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1949

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JOURNAL of the
ILLINOIS STATE
Historical Society

VOLUME XLII
1949

Published by

The Illinois State Historical Society
Springfield, Illinois

CONTENTS OF VOLUME XLII

Notes on Old Cahokia

Charles E. Peterson 7

Plainsman From Illinois

Clarence S. Paine 30

Lincoln and the Peoria French Claims

Ernest E. East 41

Silas Bryan of Salem

Paolo E. Coletta 57

Lloyd Downs Lewis, 1891-1949

Jay Monaghan 127

The Beaubien Claim

Carl B. Roden 147

The Importance of Books

Pearl S. Buck 167

Lincoln in Kansas

Charles Arthur Hawley 179

Notes on Old Cahokia, Part II

Charles E. Peterson 193

The Writing of Abraham Lincoln: A History

Helen Nicolay 259

John Russell of Bluffdale

John T. Flanagan 272

A Tour of Illinois in 1842

Mentor L. Williams 292

Notes on Old Cahokia, Part III

Charles E. Peterson 313

Stephen A. Douglas: His Weaknesses and His Greatness
Allan Nevins 385

Slavery and Negro Servitude in Pope County, Illinois

John W. Allen 411

Keen & Cooke: Prairie Publishers

Madeleine B. Stern 424

Pioneer Illinois Library

R. Louise Travous ....

446

Lincolniana, by Jay Monaghan

Autographs — Real and Forged 80

Who Made the Fingerprints? 209

When Were the Debates First Published ? 344

Lincoln’s Other Boswell 454

Historical Notes

Letters Home From ’49ers 84

Three Hardscrabble Scribes 213

Fire Marks in Illinois, by Milton Babcock 348

Gold Rush Fever Hits Mount Morris, by Upton Swingley. ... 457

The Illinois Scrapbook 90, 216, 353, 463

Book Reviews 98, 226, 360, 472

News and Comment 109, 238, 368, 486

The Illinois State

HISTORICAL SOCIETY

OFFICERS, 1948-1949

Dwight F. Clark, President
Scerial Thompson, Sr. Vice-Pres.
George C. Dixon, Vice-Pres.

O. F. Ander, Vice-Pres.

Oscar C. Hayward, Vice-Pres.

Vernon L. Nickell, Vicc-Pre r.

C. C. Tisler, Vice-Pres.

Frank J. Heinl, Vice-Pres.

Elmer E. Abrahamson, Vice-Pres.
J. Monaghan, Secy .-Treas .

DIRECTORS
(Terms Expire in 1949)

George C. Dixon, Dixon Scerial Thompson, Harrisburg

Hermon Dunlap Smith, Lake Forest Mrs. Harry L. Meyer, Alton
H. Gary Hudson, Jacksonville
(Terms Expire in 1950)

Ernest E. East, Peoria Jewell F. Stevens, Chicago

Wayne C. Townley, Bloomington O. F. Ander, Rock Island
Irving Dilliard, Collinsville
(Terms Expire in 1951)

James A. James, Evanston James G. Randall, Urbana

John H. Hauberg, Rock Island Dwight F. Clark, Evanston
Charles Collins, Chicago

STAFF OF THE JOURNAL
J Monaghan, Editor

S. A. Wetherbee and Howard F. Rissler, Associate Editors

The Illinois State Historical Society was organized to
collect and preserve data relating to the history of Illinois,
disseminate the story of the state and its citizens, and en-
courage historical research. An annual meeting is held in
October. In May the Society tours some historic neighbor-
hood. Membership is open to all. Dues are $2.00 a year,
or $50 for Life Membership.

Members receive the publications of the Society, which
are printed by authority of the State of Illinois. These pub-
lications are the Journal, a quarterly magazine devoted to
Illinois history, and occasional books and pamphlets on
historical subjects.

Manuscripts submitted for publication should be ad-
dressed to J. Monaghan, Illinois State Historical Society,
Springfield, Illinois.

The editors do not assume any responsibility for the per-
sonal opinions expressed by authors of articles published.

ENTERED AS SECOND-CLASS MATTER ON JULY 5, 1918, AT THE POST OFFICE
AT SPRINGFIELD, ILLINOIS, UNDER THE ACT OF OCTOBER 5, 1917

JOURNAL OF THE

ILLINOIS STATE

Historical Society

Volume xlii

Number 1

March 1949

Published four times a year, in March, June, September, and December

STATE OF ILLINOIS
Adlai E. Stevenson, Governor

(Printed by authority of the State of Illinois)

TABLE OF CONTENTS ^ ^ ^ ^ ^

Notes on Old Cahokia

Charles E. Peterson 7

Plainsman From Illinois

Clarence S. Paine 30

Lincoln and the Peoria French Claims

Ernest E. East 41

Silas Bryan of Salem

Paolo E. Coletto 37

Lincolniana

Autographs — Real and Forged, by Jay Monaghan 80

Historical Notes

Letters Home From ' 49 ers 84

The Illinois Scrapbook 90

Book Reviews 98

News and Comment 109

ILLUSTRATIONS^ ^ ^

A Familiar Old Landmark Front cover

Plan of Cahokia in 1735 16

Wild Bill Hickok 31

Abraham Lincoln (Meserve No. 26) 40

Robert Forsyth 43

Lincoln’s Letter to the Surveyor General 52

Mariah Elizabeth Bryan 60

Silas L. Bryan 61

Lincoln Signatures 81, 82

NOTES ON OLD CAHOKIA

BY CHARLES E. PETERSON

PART ONE

CAHOKIA, ILLINOIS, the first white man’s settlement on
the Mississippi River, has continued to exist. It was found-
ed in 1699, the same year as Williamsburg, colonial capital of
Virginia, and is a generation older than New Orleans. In May
of this year the little village will celebrate its two hundred and
fiftieth anniversary.

For the most part, the history of this ancient French settle-
ment has remained obscure; the records available to the writer
have permitted little more than a preliminary sketch.1 A few
special studies, limited in scope, have been published, but thor-

1 This article was published originally in the French American Review, Vol. I, no. 3 (July-
Sept. , 1948), 184-225- By the kind permission of Dr. Gilbert Chinard and the Institut Frangais
de Washington it is reprinted here with extensive additions, especially for the period after 1765-
The writer has included numerous footnotes so that others may pick up the study and carry
it forward. A publication of the St. Louis Historical Documents Foundation, under the
general editorship of Professor John Francis McDermott, is now in preparation.

Tribute must be paid to the monumental works of Alvord, Carter, James, and Pease,
which have been drawn upon freely. It appears to the writer that there is ample material
on Cahokia alone for a good book-length history.

Special acknowledgement is due the Abbe Arthur Maheux, Archiviste, of the Seminary
of Quebec, to Miss Rose Josephine Boylan, of East St. Louis, and to Miss Margaret C. Norton,
Illinois State Archivist, for the privilege of examining the Perrin Collection.

Charles E. Peterson is regional architect for the National Park
Service with headquarters in Richmond , Virginia. He is a student of
American building construction and while investigating the architecture
of early St. Louis became interested in the French in North America.
This is the latest in a series of essays he has written on the -physical
development of villages of the Illinois country. Parts II and III of
“ Notes on Old Cahokia' ' will appear in the June and September issues
of this Journal.

NOTES ON OLD CAHOKIA

ough study of all surviving manuscripts, particularly those in
Paris, Seville, Quebec, New Orleans, Philadelphia, Ann Arbor,
Madison, Chicago, Springfield, and Chester, Illinois, is need-
ed to complete our view of Cahokia’s colorful past. Meanwhile,
the rich farmlands which still define the village are disappear-
ing before the industrial growth of metropolitan St. Louis,
and it seems only a question of time before physical identity
will be lost.

THE FOUNDING

(1699)

Exactly when the first white men came to live in the Ca-
hokia region will probably never be known. A tradition repeat-
ed by several writers a hundred years and more ago claimed that
fur traders remained here with the Indians following La Salle’s
visit of 1682. 2 But these coureurs de hois were a transient lot
of Canadians and left little or no record behind.

The formal establishment of the white man at Cahokia
came in the spring of 1699 when a mission was consecrated by
priests of the Seminary of Quebec. Official sanction had been
given in the form of "letters patent” issued by Bishop St.
Vallier on July 14, 1698. In that document a mission to the
Tamaroa Indians was advocated as the logical base for reach-
ing more distant nations on the Mississippi and Missouri
rivers.3 The Tamaroa tribe, one of the Illinois ethnic group,
lived on the rich bottomlands just below the junction of those
rivers.

Preparations were soon undertaken for an expedition to
the Illinois country, as this region was called, and less than six
weeks later the party started from Quebec. Father Frangois
Jolliet de Montigny was in charge. With him were the Rever-
end Messrs. Jean Frangois Buisson de St. Cosme, Antoine
Davion, and Thaumur de la Source. In addition there were three

2 E. g.: Amos Stoddard, Sketches, Historical and Descriptive, of Louisiana (Philadelphia,
1812), 233.

3 MS, Archives of the Seminary of Quebec (A.S.Q.). Missions, no. 54.

CHARLES E. PETERSON

freres donnes and two blacksmiths with tools for building con-
struction, all in three canoes. A memorandum of the time lists
twelve engages who left Montreal with the party, together with
their pay, which was in cash and Indian trade goods.4 A fourth
canoe belonged to M. de Vincennes, on his way to the Miami
Indians. The party was guided by none other than Henry de
Tonti, La Salle’s trusted lieutenant, who was carrying merchan-
dise to Fort St. Louis on the Illinois River and to the Arkansas
post.5

After traveling the Great Lakes by way of Michilimackinac
and Chicago and portaging to the Illinois and Mississippi
rivers, the party set up camp early in December on the river
near what is now the city of St. Louis. On the eighth of the
month they were received by the Tamaroa Indians. "There
would be enough for a rather fine mission," wrote Father St.
Cosme, a few weeks after, "by bringing to it the Kaouchias
[Cahokias], who live quite near, and the Mechigamias, who
live a little lower down the Micissipi, and who are said to be
pretty numerous."6 Presents were exchanged and friendly rela-
tions established. The priests then passed on down the river
to survey the country as far as the Arkansas.

Within a few months, however, three of them were back
with the Tamaroa Indians, and Father St. Cosme was left there
as resident pastor. A lodging was put up by May 14, and the
logs for a chapel cut and made ready for use. The latter was
soon finished and, in dedication of the new mission, they
"planted a cross with the greatest possible ceremony." All of
the Indians in the area (some two thousand) were said to have
been present. It was a great occasion, both then and in retro-
spect, for Cahokia was the first white man’s settlement on the
Mississippi River and now seems to have attained the distinc-

4 A. S. Q., Missions 107, no. 1.

5 Clarence W. Alvord, The Illinois Country , 1673-1818 (Springfield, 1920), 109.

6 St. Cosme to — Arkansas Country, Jan. 2, 1699, quoted in Joseph J. Thompson,

“The Cahokia Mission Property,” Illinois Catholic Historical Review, Vol. 3, nos. 3-4 (Jan.-
April, 1923), 210.

NOTES ON OLD CAHOKIA

tion of being the oldest settlement in the entire valley.7

White traders from Canada had definitely settled in the
region by the following year, when five canoes with furs arrived
at Biloxi on the Gulf with nineteen men said to be married and
living in Cahokia or on the Illinois River.8 About the same
time, LeSueur’s expedition met thirty of these marchands
voyageurs on the Upper Mississippi.9 While trading for furs
these earliest Frenchmen lived with the Indians on intimate
terms and accompanied them as they moved about. But the
missions tended to fix the locations of these tribes and there
were soon to be several semi-permanent establishments in the
rich bottomlands of the Illinois country.10

The first white man’s buildings at Cahokia among the mat
cabins of the Indians were the house of Father St. Cosme,* 11
completed before May 14, 1699, and la chap ell e des Tamar ots,
built by the workmen brought from Canada.12 No descriptions
have been found of these buildings. It is not unlikely that they
were built of poteaux en terre or palisadoed construction, like
most of the smaller buildings of the early Illinois country. The
builders were probably the two blacksmiths brought along for
the purpose.13

7 While La Salle’s Forts Crevecoeur (1680) and St. Louis (1682) on the Illinois River, the
Post of the Arkansas (1686), and Fort Pimitoui (1691) were established a little earlier, they
have not remained in continuous existence. The first Biloxi, also founded in May, 1699, was
the first settlement of the new French colony on the Gulf Coast. It was later moved.

8 Alvord, Illinois Country , 128.

9 Pierre Margry, ed., Decouvertes et Etablissements des Frangais dans I’Ouest et dans le Sud de
V Amerique Septentrionale (Paris, 1875-1886), V : 408-409. The LeSueur expedition was wel-
comed at this village and spent seventeen days there. It lost four Frenchmen who wished
to return to Canada but picked up five more in their place.

10 Cahokia’s neighboring settlements on the east bank of the Mississippi — Kaskaskia
(1703), Ste. Anne’s (1719), St. Philippe ( ca . 1723), and nearly all of Prairie du Rocher (1721)—
have disappeared.

11 Jean Francois Buisson de St. Cosme, born Pointe Levis, Quebec, Jan. 30, 1667, mur-
dered by Indians on the lower Mississippi in 1707- John Gilmary Shea, Early Voyages Up and
Down the Mississippi (Albany, 1861), 45- Gilbert J. Garraghan, “New Light on Old Cahokia,”
III. Cath. Hist. Rev., Vol. XI (July- April, 1928-1929), 99, is the best single secondary work on
the founding of Cahokia, especially for the controversy with the Jesuits.

12 Edward J. Fortier, “The Establishment of the Tamarois Mission,” Transactions of the
Illinois State Historical Society for the Year 1908 (Springfield, 1909), 236.

13 One of these was probably the Sieur Elie Simonville, maitre forger on, mentioned in 1702
as "habitant aud Lieu des Tamarois." A.S.Q., Missions, no. 69. The founding expedition was
an expensive one; it is said to have cost between 20,000 and 25,000 livres “to equip these mis-
sionaries, to pay and feed their canoemen and to subsist themselves for several years in that

CHARLES E. PETERSON

The Jesuits, who had already been proselyting the Illinois
Indians for twenty-five years, felt that their territory had been
unjustly taken over by competitors. They soon afterward
established a rival mission here, and, according to their own
report, ministered to the Indians while Father Bergier, the
Seminary’s Vicar General at Cahokia, had "charge of the
French only.14 The problem was resolved by a decision made
in France in 1701. The original instructions were upheld,15 and
the Jesuits moved on down the river in 1703 to found the vil-
lage of Kaskaskia, which soon outgrew its older neighbor.16

Little is known of this period. Even the name of the place
varies considerably in the record. At first anyone at Cahokia
was simply "aux Tamar ois” — in other words "with the Ta-
maroa Indians.”17 Later the name "Caos” or "Kaokia” (of
which there were numerous variants) was adopted. It was not
until late in the eighteenth century that "Cahokia” began to
be generally used in its standard modern form.

The French enjoyed good relations with most of the Indian
nations but the terrors of war were soon visited on their Ca-
hokia neighbors. Early in the summer of 1700 a war party of
Sioux, coming down from the north, surprised a group of the

country.” Unsigned "Memo ire sur V etablissment de la Missions des Tamarois de 1699 a 1724."
A.S.Q., Polygraph 9, no. 26. The "Relation de Penicault" mentions nothing about the mission
buildings. Margry, Decouvertes et Etablissements, V : 409. The first Illinois country church de-
scribed (1711) is that of the Jesuits at Kaskaskia. It was “very large/’ had a belfry and a
bell and three chapels. Ibid., V : 491.

Some kind of Cahokia building project may have been in mind when, in 1705, the mis-
sion requested an anvil, two hammers, and a great assortment of nails, ‘‘the most rare and
precious items here.” A.S.Q., Missions, no. 105a.

14 Jacques Gravier to Jean de Lamberville, Fort Mississippi, Feb. 16, 1701, Reuben Gold
Thwaites, ed., The Jesuit Relations and Allied Documents (Cleveland, 1900), LXV : 103. Alvord,
Illinois Country, 118-19. The Jesuit Father Pinet seems to have remained at Cahokia until about
1702. Thwaites, Jesuit Relations, LXIV : 278.

13 J. H. Schlarman, From Quebec to New Orleans (Belleville, 111., 1929), 149.

16 Natalia Maree Belting, Kaskaskia Under the French Regime (Urbana, 1948), 10.

17 Father Jean Bergier, writing to Quebec in February, 1700, explained the designation
as follows: ‘‘The Tamarois and the Cahokias are the only ones that really form part of this
mission. The Tamarois have about thirty cabins and the Cahokias have nearly twice that
number. Although the Tamarois are at present less numerous than the Cahokias, the village
is still called Tamaroa, gallicized ‘Des Tamarois’ because the Tamarois have been the first
and are still the oldest inhabitants and have first lit a fire there, to use the Indian expression.
All the other nations who have joined them afterwards have not caused the name of the vil-
lage to change, but have been under the name Tamarois although they were not Tamarois.”
Edward Joseph Fortier, ‘‘Points in Illinois History,” 111. Cath. Hist. Rev., Vol. V (Julv-April,
1922-1923), 149.

NOTES ON OLD CAHOKIA

local tribesmen out picking strawberries. With typical ferocity
they "cut off the neck of a slave belonging to a Frenchman;
stabbed two women to death and scalped them; wounded a
girl with a knife and crushed another under foot.” The reprisal
was no less barbaric when three Sioux stragglers were discov-
ered and captured, killed, burned, and eaten.18 The next year
many of the Indians moved across the Mississippi to join the
Jesuits (then temporarily at the mouth of the Des Peres River)
and there were left only sixty or seventy cabins of the Cahokia
tribe. Fearfully conscious of their reduced strength, they soon
set about putting up a palisadoed fort for defense.19

Although none of the missionaries was martyred at Ca-
hokia— and they were often enough in the West — a resentful
minority opposed them. When Father Bergier died a few years
later his passing was, for his opponents, "a cause of triumph.
They gathered around the cross that he had erected, and there
they invoked their Manitou, — each one dancing, and attribut-
ing to himself the glory of having killed the Missionary, after
which they broke the cross into a thousand pieces.”20

Cahokia was in this period the most advanced outpost of
civilization in the West21 and was well known to travelers on
the rivers. But in its first two decades of settlement the Illinois
country did not prosper greatly, support being discouraged by
conflict in Europe as well as a local war with the Fox Indians.
Restrictions on the fur trade promulgated by the governor of
Canada also retarded for a time this prosperous commerce of
the frontier.

LOUISIANA PERIOD
(1718-1765)

At first Cahokia was considered to be under the govern-
ment of Quebec represented at Fort St. Louis (or Pimitoui) on

18 Jean Bergier to , Tamarois, June 14, 1700. III. Cath. Hist. Rev., Vol. V, p. 150.

19 Bergier to , April 13, 1701, Ibid. , 151.

20 Pierre Gabriel Marest to Barthelemi Germon, Kaskaskia, Nov. 9, 1712, Thwaites,
Jesuit Relations, LX VI: 263.

21 From here in Mar., 1702, a small expedition left to ascend the Missouri River and
build a fort two hundred leagues above its mouth. Gilbert J. Garraghan, “The Emergence
of the Missouri Valley into History,” III. Cath. Hist. Rev., Vol. IX (April, 1927), 315-

CHARLES E. PETERSON

, the Illinois River. In 1717, however, the whole Illinois country
was reallocated to the administration of Louisiana,22 and a
district command under the new Company of the Indies was
1 shortly afterward established at Fort de Chartres, some miles
1 below Cahokia and near Kaskaskia.23

Until the complete defeat of the Fox Indians in 1730 there
i are few evidences of material progress at Cahokia, which was
the most exposed of the villages on the Mississippi. Early
visitors have given us but few details. Father Charlevoix, on
his way from Canada to New Orleans, in the spring of 1721
visited here and spent a night in the house of missionaries. He
did not describe the village, although he remarked about its
location:

The Cao^uias and the Tamarouas ... do not together make a very
numerous Village. It is situated on a little River, which comes from the
East, and which has no Water but in the Spring Season; so that we were
forced to walk a good half League to the Cabins. I was surprised that
they had chosen such an inconvenient Situation, as they might have found
a much better; but they told me that the Mississippi washed the Foot of
the Village when it was built, and that in three Years it had lost half a
League of Ground, and that they were thinking of looking out for another
Settlement.24

On June 22, 1722, the commandant at Fort de Chartres
gave the Cahokia mission a large grant of land — four leagues
(twelve miles) square — beginning above the village and ex-
tending down along the river twelve miles and including the
adjacent islands. It included two large open grasslands — the
Cahokia Prairie and the Prairie du Pont. This concession seems
to have been considered as a seigneurie or feudal estate along
the lines of those established in Canada, some of which were

22 Ordinance dated Sept. 27 or Oct. 4, 1717, Alvord, Illinois Country , 1.51. (Paris, Ar-
chives Rationales, Colonies, B, 39: 457.)

23 Pierre Duque de Boisbriand, the first commandant, set out from Mobile in 1718 and
arrived in the Illinois country in December. His headquarters, the first Fort de Chartres, was
completed in 1720. Alvord, Illinois Country, 153. Schlarman, Quebec to New Orleans, 193. In
1731, the Company of the Indies admitted the failure of its project in America and gave up
Louisiana, which then became a royal province.

24 P. F. X. de Charlevoix, Letters to the Dutchess of Lesdiguieres (London, 1763), 291.

NOTES ON OLD CAHOKIA

owned by religious orders.25 Land being cheap and plentiful,
however, it is doubtful that any of the habitants of Cahokia
ever submitted to the forms of serfdom which had been so long
borne by the peasantry of France. No mission record books
have been preserved to show whether or not rents and taxes
were ever paid to the proprietors.

A census made by M. Diron in June, 1723, lists seven habi-
tants, one volontaire, one woman and three children as living
at Cahokia — a total of twelve as against 196 at Kaskaskia and
126 at the Fort de Chartres and at the lead mines on the Mera-
mec River.26 In that year the Fort d’Orleans was established on
the Missouri River by a detachment under Bourgmond, and
Father Mercier of Cahokia served as its aumonier. This outpost,
originally designed to thwart Spanish intrusion from Mexico,
was in the few years of its existence a protection to traders
among the western Indians.

A census of 1732, oddly enough, lists no white men,
women, or children at Cahokia. The mission was evidently
staffed, however, for there were four Negroes and five Indian
slaves listed. Two houses, one barn, ten horses, three oxen,
seven cows, and thirty hogs comprised the temporal wealth of
the little outpost.27 The population seems not to have begun its
real growth before this time. Father Mercier, on May 25, 1732,
mentioned that a water mill built by the mission had been com-
pleted and operating for more than a month and that he had
had the walnut timbers hewn for a house to be raised in July.28
He also thought that it was "time to think of building a large

25 Schlarman, Quebec to New Orleans , 279. A collated copy of 1735 is preserved as A. S. Q.,
Polygraph 9, no. 13. Two other prairies in this area are mentioned in 1790: the Prairie of the
“Brise Culote” (Broken Cap) and the Prairie of the “Gross Liard’’ (Big Cottonwood Tree).
Clarence Edwin Carter, ed., The Territorial Papers of the United States (Washington, 1934), II:
265-

26 Paris, Archives Nationales, Colonies C13A, 8: 226.

27 Belting, Kaskaskia Under the Trench, 38.

28 On this house two porches were to run down its long sides “not for the beauty of the
building, but for the preservation of the sills, which will last half as long again.’’ As one
gable he planned to place an extension for a milk house (f Taitterie”') and as the other a dis-
pensary Q' depense"'). Schlarman, Quebec to New Orleans, 288. In August Mercier wrote that
his brother Joseph had been at Cahokia for several days and that he would make the iron-
work for the house. A.S.Q., Missions, no. 43.

CHARLES E. PETERSON

church.”29 A small scale map of the Illinois country made by the
engineer-architect Ignace Francois Broutin and dated 1734 rep-
resents Cahokia as a village of seven or eight Frenchmen with
a settlement of 130 Indians just above it.30

The only known eighteenth century plan of Cahokia31 is a
rather crude sketch of questionable scale sent to Quebec in
1735. Entitled "Plan de la Seigneurie et Etablissement de la
Mission des Tamarois,” it gives the earliest comprehensive
description of the settlement.

The village proper fronted on a narrow channel of the Mis-
sissippi (divided at that point) and between two small streams
— the petite riviere des Koakias and the riviere du pont32 In
the middle, on the river’s bank, was the mission establishment.
Within a rectangular enclosure — probably a stockade — is
shown the missionaries’ house, a projected bakehouse, two
houses for Negro slaves and one for Indians, a court, a well,
a latrine, and a garden. Immediately outside of the enclosure
was the church,33 a shed, a stable, and a barn. North of the
church were the houses of nine habitants identified by name.34

The evolution of the village plan as a whole is obscure. The
river channel which it faced was called "le Rigolet" and a
j street — "la rue du Rigolet ” — ran along it.35 This stream was

29 Perhaps this was the church built in the Cahokia Indian village about 1735-

30 Natalia Maree Belting, “The French Villages of the Illinois Country,’’ Canadian His-
torical Review, Vol. XXIV, no. 1 (March, 1943), 15-

31 Governor St. Clair, who had found no map of Cahokia lands had one made about
1790, but this seems to have been lost. Arthur St. Clair to Secretary of State, Feb. 10, 1791.
Carter, Territorial Papers, II: 326. A map by Wm. Rector, dated May 23, 1808, appears as a
copperplate engraving in the American State Papers, Public Lands (Washington, 18349, II: 194.
It shows the main divisions of land but not the village layout.

32 A site a mile or so below the village of 1735 is labeled “ dernier Etablissement Fran^ais
abbandon[e]”') indicating that the village had been moved upstream at an earlier date as sug-

!' gested by Charlevoix’ account.

33 A fragment of a census for 1732 gave the Cahokia mission four Negro and eight Indian
slaves. Margaret C. Norton, Illinois Census Returns ( Illinois Historical Collections, XXIV,
Springfield, 1935), xxiii.

The only information given about the church is that it was thirty-seven pieds long
(about forty English feet). The group seems to have suffered a bad fire in 1739 but the extent

! of the damage is not known. Laurens to , Cahokia, June, 1756. A.S.Q., Missions , no.

’ 26.

34 These were Louis Gault, Blondin, Robillard, La Source, Rocet, Frangois Mercier,

\ Abraham, Pichard, and Pitre.

35 Pierre Frangois DeVolsey to Louis St. Ange, 1766 (MS, Schmidt Collection, Chicago
Historical Society).

NOTES ON OLD CAHOKIA

Plan of Cahokia in 1735

This ink and watercolor map, which is evidently a copy contem-
porary with one at the Seminary of Quebec, is preserved in the archives
of the Bishop of Belleville. It was drawn by two missionaries, J. P.
Mercier and J. Courier, whose letter accompanying it said: “As to the
map, which we have the honor to send to you, we made it the best we
could; it is sufficiently correct as to distance from one place to another. . .
it can always give you an idea of the location of our seigniory of the
Tamaroas.” (J. H. Schlarman, From Quebec to New Orleans , 284). Their
letter is dated April 12, 1735- Although it is not shown here, the original
map contains a small insert at the upper left which is a detailed layout of

CHARLES E. PETERSON

the mission buildings. Along the right-hand side of the map is the num-
bered guide which follows (along with a translation):

ORIGINAL

PLAN DE LA SEIGNEURIE ET
ETABLISSEMENT DE LA MIS-
SION DES TAMAROIS

1. Village Sauvage des Kaokias

2. Maison de Louis gault habit-
ant

3. Maison de Blondin.h

4. Maison de Robillard.h

5. Maison de la Source. h

6. granche de la Mission

7. hangard et Ecurie

8. Maison de Rocet.h

9. L’Eglise

10. Maison de la famille indienne
a la mission

11. Maison des missionaires

12. une maison de deux families
negres a la mission

13. autre maison de quatre negres
a la mission

14. Maison de francois Mercier.h
15- Le fort du Roy

16. Maison de abraham

17. Maison de Pichard.h

18. Maison de pitre

19. Maison de Mr. de moncher-
veaux hors le fort

20. Le pont

21. Lisle de la Ste. famille

22. le moulin de la Cote de St.
Michel

23. Maison de jean missuiy [?]

24. grange de francois mercier
25- prairie des buttes

26. ancien village des Kaskakias

27. Chemin des Kaokias au fort
de Chartres

28. Source de la Riviere

29. dernier Etablissement francais
abbandone

30. cloture de la Commune

31. Terrain occupe par les Kaokias

32. Domaine

TRANSLATION

PLAN OF THE SEIGNIORY AND
ESTABLISHMENT OF THE MIS-
SION OF THE TAMAROAS

Cahokia Indian village
House of Louis Gault, citizen

House of Blondin, citizen
House of Robillard, citizen
House of La Source, citizen
Barn of the mission
Shed and stable
House of Rocet, citizen
The church

House of the Indian family of the
mission

House of the missionaries
A house of two Negro families of
the mission

Another house of four Negroes of
the mission

House of Francois Mercier, citizen
The fort of the King
House of Abraham
House of Pichard, citizen
House of Pitre

House of Mr. de Moncherveaux
outside of the fort
The bridge

The Island of the Holy Family
The mill of St. Michael’s Bluff
[Falling Springs]

House of John Missuiy [?]

Barn of Francois Mercier
Prairie of the [Indian] mounds
Former village of the Kaskaskias
Road from Cahokia to Fort de
Chartres

Source of the river

Former establishment of the French,

abandoned

Enclosure of the Commons
Land occupied by the Cahokias
Domain [the common fields]

NOTES ON OLD CAHOKIA

navigable for two miles above the village and provided a "safe
and convenient harbour for Boats.”36 The missionaries gave out
free building lots called terreins or emplacements to anyone
who wished to settle here37 and these made a long and strag-
gling row facing the water.38 None of the Illinois country
villages in the French period seems to have been plotted in
advance, and the commandant at Fort de Chartres had written
to the Governor at New Orleans:

It would be absolutely necessary, Messieurs, that you should giv
your orders that all the villages built and to be built should be aligned i n
sixty foot squares, so that the places may be walled as is done in Detrcd
and elsewhere in Canada as a protection against Indian raids. We wish
to take no responsibility for what has already been established, which
very irregular. 39

In general, however, these settlements were relatively compact.
Farmers lived in the villages alongside the traders and artisans,
and scattered farmhouses were rare. This policy was followed
not only for protection but for sociability and for convenience
to the church.40

Below the church was the "fort du Roy ” and near it the
house of Ensign Montchervaux, the commandant. Historically,
the forts at Cahokia had the fugitive qualities of most frontier
works of defense. Undoubtedly through the years there were
several entirely different structures, each of palisadoes (called
"pieux” by the French) which under ordinary conditions were
very short-lived. One famous early French-Canadian military
engineer said of them, "In peace time such forts are not built in
the colony because they rot quickly and are useless by the time
war is declared.”41 In the Illinois country these fort structures

36 Arthur St. Clair to Secretary of State, Feb. 10, 1791, Carter, Territorial Papers, II: 326.

37 Mercier to Pierre Rigaud de Vaudreuil. April 20, 1743- A.S.Q., Missions, no. 28.

38 Captain Philip Pittman, The Present State of the European Settlements on the Mississippi
(Cleveland, 1906), 92.

39 Macarty and Joseph Buchet to Pierre Rigaud de Vaudreuil, Illinois, Jan. 15, 1752.
Theodore Calvin Pease and Ernestine Jenison, eds., Illinois on the Eve of the Seven Years’ War,
1747-1755 ( Illinois Historical Collections , XXIX, Springfield, 1940), 427.

40 John Reynolds, The Pioneer History of Illinois (Belleville, 111., 1852), 100.

41 Pierre-Georges Roy, ed:, lnventaire des Papiers de Lery (Quebec, 1939), I: 64.

CHARLES E. PETERSON

were maintained by contributions of palisadoes furnished regu-
larly by both habitants and voyageurs ,42

The first Cahokia fort, as mentioned above, was the one
under construction by the Indians in 1700. Another, built by
the French, and under the command of St. Ange in 1723 with a
garrison of four soldiers, was described as "a wretched fort
of piles.”43 In 1732 Father Mercier was urging construction of
still another fort here,44 probably the one indicated on the mis-
sionary map.45 In their time the Cahokia forts had minor mili-
tary importance, being maintained only as listening posts for
Indian affairs, to keep order among the whites,46 and as a militia
headquarters. Captain Pittman wrote, "A fort here would be
of very little consequence as it could neither annoy an enemy
or protect the inhabitants.”47

The missionaries and one Francois Mercier had barns in the
rear of the village, which was set off from the hinterlands by
the commons fence (Cloture de la Commune ). The domestic
animals had the full run of the large triangular commons thus
enclosed as well as the village streets.48

42 The commandant ordered the Illinois posts maintained by this method about 1752.
Pierre Rigaud de Vaudreuil to Macarty, April 25, 1752. Pease and Jenison, Illinois on the Eve ,
603. At Fort de Chartres, a four-sided work, a quantity of palisadoes sufficient to replace one
side (or curtain) each year was commandeered of the habitants and voyageurs. Ibid., 442.

43 Newton D. Mereness, ed., Travels in the American Colonies (New York, 1916), 71, 80.

44 Mericer to Dec. 16, 1732. A.S.Q., Missions , no. 42. He recommended a garri-

son of at least twenty-four men.

45 The fort was built about 1734 and garrisoned by twenty men. Alvord, Illinois Country ,

i74.

4fi Pierre Riguad de Vaudreuil to Antoine-Louis Rouille, May 15, 1751, Pease and Jeni-
son, Illinois on the Eve, 262. Ten men were approved for this post under M. de Vosse in 1752.
Ibid., 467, 601.

47 Philip Pittman to Thomas Gage, Feb. 24, 1766, Gage Papers (MSS in the William L.
Clements Library, Ann Arbor).

One account, of unknown origin and doubtful reliability, states that “Cahokia was
fortified — as nearly as we can now ascertain — after the defeat of D’Artaquette by the Chicka-
saws, between the years 1736 and 1740, and while Chevalier De la Boissonier was comman-
dant of the Illinois at Fort Chartres. A log fort was built in the center of the settlement, across
the road from the church, and the whole village was enclosed by a stockade of sharpened
pickets twelve feet high having a gate at the west and one at the east.” J. F. Snyder, Belle-
ville Weekly Advocate, July 31, 1908.

48 In an unsigned letter or memoir written about 1720 it is stated that the “Isle de la
Ste. Eamille ” had been determined upon for a commons “to prevent the cattle from harming
the dwellings which may be put up later.” III. Cath. Hist. Rev., Vol. V, no. 2 (Oct., 1922),
152. A.S.Q., Polygraph 9, no. 16.

The function of the village commons was early described at Kaskaskia as an area for
the pasturage of cattle, horses, and hogs, and as a place “to procure and draw therefrom mill-

NOTES ON OLD CAHOKIA

Beyond the fence, a mile or more upstream, were the Ca-
hokia Indians. The missionaries found themselves in a difficult
position as spiritual mentors of both the French and the Indian
settlements, for the two races en famille did not get along well
at too close range, especially when brandy was flowing freely.
The French wanted the Indians farther away from the village,
but the Cahokias, debauched by their contact with the whites
and fearing their ancient enemies, refused to move far from
the protection of the little fort. A separate church was finally
built for them.49

The development of the Cahokia plowlands can be fol-
lowed in part. The ground was fertile and did not even have to
be cleared of trees.50 A peculiar "strip farm” layout — similar to
those along the rivers of Canada — seems to have been contem-
plated as early as 1731 when the missionaries purchased from
the Indians an area of land of thirty arpents frontage above
their original grant.51 This was laid out in tracts three arpents
wide starting at the commons fence. By 1735 the first three
tracts (nine arpents in all, starting at the commons fence) had
been allotted to various parties. The mission kept the next two
strips (six arpents ) and beyond this were three more partly in
cultivation by others. Progress is evident, for in 1732 there
were 3,500 bundles of wheat harvested.52 The crops of the Illi-

stones, stone to build with and make lime thereof, and timber suitable for . . . building. ”
Sidney Breese, The Early History of Illinois , (Chicago, 1884), 289. The Cahokia commons was
defined by the habitants in 1790 as “land on which to support their cattle’’ and for getting
“wood not only for building but for fuel.” American State Papers, Public Lands, I: 20,

49 Alvord, Illinois Country, 200. In a letter of May 21, 1735, Father Mercier requested
the Seminary to furnish proper equipment for “our new church at the Indian village. ’ ’ Among
the items asked for were some fine cloth (belle Etojfe') to furnish the retable, a crucifix, six
candlesticks, six bouquets of artificial flowers in pots, a cross to serve in processions and at
burials, a little banner with a picture of the Holy Family painted on it, a statue of the Holy
Virgin, some packets of candles, etc., A.S.Q., Polygraph 9, no. 15. A list of tools and other
items sent from Quebec to the Cahokia mission in 1737-1739 appears in A.S.Q., Missions, no.
106.

50 A memoir of about 1720 stated that “the soil of the Cahokia is very easy to cultivate,
being at least two feet deep where it is found to be black, fertile and light. ’ ’ The main prairie
at the village was two leagues long by three quarters wide and was believed capable of servic-
ing 150 workmen. III. Cath. Hist. Rev., Vol. V, no. 2 (Oct., 1922), 152. A.S.Q., Polygraph 9,
no. 16.

51 Mercier to Vaudreuil, April 20, 1743, A.S.Q., Missions, no. 28. The arpent or “Paris
Acre” was a square, 180 feet (old French) or 192^2 feet (English measurement) on each side.

52 It was thought that wheat throve better here than at Kaskaskia “owing probably

CHARLES E. PETERSON

nois country were convoyed down the river to New Orleans
and were an important factor in supporting life on the Gulf
Coast.53 "These interior settlements," wrote Thwaites, "were
long regarded as the garden of New France."54

The Indian occupation of the river bank interfered with
the completion of these fields, which, the farmers insisted,
should run without interruption from the river to the bluffs "in
the same manner as it was granted by all the concessioners or
seigniors to all the habitants of Illinois," referring to Kaskaskia
and the other villages below.55 This was eventually accom-
plished, and the peculiar pattern of these farms, known as "the
commonfields,” can be traced even today. Some of the strips
less than 200 feet wide were over a mile long.

The road south passed over a small bridge, which gave the
name to the "riviere du pont ” As this road turned and climbed
the bluffs it passed the mission watermill at the Cote de St.
Michel (at what is now called "Falling Springs") and went
southward across the rolling plateau toward Fort de Chartres.56

The missionaries made every effort to create a stable com-

to its being more Northerly by almost a Degree.” Clarence W. Alvord and Clarence Edwin
Carter, The New Regime (Illinois Historical Collections, XI, Springfield, 1916), 299. See also,
Sister Mary Borgias, ‘‘The First Illinois Wheat,” Mid-America, Vol. XIII, no. 1 (July, 1930),
72, 73.

53 Norman W. Caldwell, The French in the Mississippi Valley, 1740-1750 (Urbana, 1941),

27, 41, 42.

54 Reuben Gold Thwaites, France in America, 1497-1763 (New York, 1905), 86.

55 The Kaskaskia land pattern seems to have been arranged, after some difficulties, by
Boisbriant about 1727- See petition of the inhabitants of Kaskaskia, Feb. 9, 1727, Breese,
Early History , 286-89. No official surveyor had as yet come to the district, but one was at that
time hoped for in order that the pattern of real estate might be permanently fixed.

In 1790 all the fields of Cahokia and Prairie du Pont were described as running clear to
the bluffs from either the river or the Rigolet. Their long narrow dimensions tended to in-
sure an equitable distribution of good land among the proprietors, so that each got a share
of slough (which was worthless), of woods (which would have to be cleared), and of prairie
(which needed only to be plowed). Carter, Territorial Papers, II: 242, 263-73-

56 A translation of this excellent description appears in Schlarman, Quebec to New Orleans,
219-90. The original text, together with the maps, is preserved in A.S.Q. No reference to its
construction has been found.

The development of mills at Cahokia is somewhat obscure to the writer. On April 20,
1743, Father Mercier wrote to Vaudreuil that a water mill costing 4,000 francs had been built.
Shortage of water then caused him to build a windmill (1,000 ecus'). A millwright was en-
gaged for the windmill at a cost of 4,000 livres of flour. (A.S.Q. , Missions, no. 28.) A letter
by Father Laurens in 1756 discusses mills but is nearly illegible. (A.S.Q., Missions, no. 26.)
Captain Pittman, in 1766, wrote that there were ‘‘two watermills one for Planks and one for
corn belonging to the said Mission, but owing to the ignorance of the undertaker in making
the Dams they cannot be made use of.” Pittman to Gage, Feb. 24, 1766, Gage Papers.

NOTES ON OLD CAHOKIA

munity, but it was admitted that the habitants "take land today
and leave it tomorrow." The adventurous life of the itinerant
fur trader lured many of the most enterprising men away from
these settlements.57

Macarty’s census of 1752, preserved among the Loudoun
Papers, lists the households of Cahokia in some detail. There
were the priest of the mission, 13 married couples with 42
children, four unmarried men, one widow, and 15 volontaires ,58
Racially the community had 89 whites, 24 Negroes, and 23
Indians. The most extensive property was that of the mission:
19 Negroes, four Indians (presumably slaves), 75 head of
cattle, 19 horses and mules, and 20 hogs. The agricultural re-
sources of the village were listed as 33 arpents of land, 224
head of cattle, 83 horses and mules, and 100 hogs. Boys above
the age of twelve were considered as capable of bearing arms,
increasing the total to 21 potential citizen soldiers. For the
defense of the village they had 29 fusils,59 67 livres of powder,
and 68 of lead and ball.60

While the white population was thus growing, the local
Indians in the same year met another of those calamities which
eventually wiped them out. The event is narrated by Captain
Bossu of the French marines, who spent several years in this
region and described it in a little volume of travels published in
Paris. On June 6, the Foxes and their allies, in a force estimated
at one thousand, paddled down from the north and surprised
the Illinois tribes while most of the Cahokia French were down
at St. Anne’s village witnessing a Corpus Christi celebration.
A great number of Indians were killed and their cabins burned.

57 “Mais la passion de la chasse et de la traite, qui, la, ainsi que dans presque toutes les
autres parties de l’Amerique Septentrionale, a de tout fait languir les etablissemens frangais,
et negliger le point essentiel, celui de la culture.” Berquin-Duvallon, ed., Vue de la Colonie
Espagnole de Mississipi (Paris, 1803), 61.

58 A precise definition of the term volontaire is not known. The reference is to some kind
of resident who did not own land and was, perhaps, an indentured servant or contract em-
ployee.

59 According to Dr. Thomas Hoopes, St. Louis expert on antique firearms, these would
have been long arms of the flintlock type, either rifled or smooth bore.

60 Loudoun Papers, 426: 6, 7. From a transcription, courtesy Drs. Pease and Belting,
Urbana. (Original at the Huntington Library, San Marino, Calif.)

CHARLES E. PETERSON

The French village was spared, and as the attackers paddled
back upstream, with their prisoners bound at their feet, they
fired a salute to the Cahokia fort.61

The 1750’s saw the last of the great frontier struggle be-
tween the English and the French for domination of the Missis-
sippi Valley. In the Illinois country the war was marked by the
construction of the great stone Fort de Chartres and measures
for the support of Fort Duquesne at the forks of the Ohio on
what is now the point of Pittsburgh’s "Golden Triangle.” In
1754 George Washington at Fort Necessity surrendered to the
French, and General Braddock was killed in the same region
the next year. But after the fall of Quebec the war was lost and
defeat cost France her colonial empire in America.

In spite of the general preoccupation with war, the Caho-
kia mission in these years was much further developed by
Father Forget du Verger, the last Vicar-General at Cahokia
under the French regime. This handsome property, the most
considerable in the settlement, had:

One house ... of stone consisting of several rooms and several other
buildings, that is, barn, horse-stable, stables, sheds, mill, and in general,
all the buildings belonging to that said house, as also the land belonging
to it. divided in court, garden, orchard planted with fruit trees, the which
land measuring about three hundred fifty feet in width by nine hundred
in length, all being situated in the Holy Family of the Kaokias.62

In addition there was a grist and sawmill on the "little Kaokia
river” and four arpents of land as well as thirty slaves and two
or three hundred domestic animals.63 But the mission was now
at an end, as events soon proved.

BRITISH OCCUPATION
(1765-1776)

Violent changes marked the few years — less than thirteen
— in which the English dominated the eastern part of the Illi-

61 Jean Bernard Bossu, Travels Through That Tart of North America Formerly Called Louisiana
(London, 1771), 1: 129-34.

62 Schlarman, Quebec to New Orleans , 367; A.S.Q., Missions, no. 25.

63 Pierre Gibault to Jean Olivier Briand, Oct., 1767, in Clarence W. Alvord and Clarence
Edwin Carter, Trade and Politics ( Illinois Historical Collections, XVI, Springfield, 1921), 616.

NOTES ON OLD CAHOKIA

nois country. Cahokia and her neighbors had avoided the major
disasters of the French and Indian War, but in 1763 all of the
land east of the Mississippi was ceded to England, and British
troops finally relieved the garrison at Fort de Chartres in Octo-
ber, 1765. Before the month was up an officer appeared at
Cahokia to demand of the habitants oaths of allegiance to the
government of George III.64

In the excitement of the times Father du Verger sold the
whole Cahokia mission property even before the roof was
finished on his new house.65 Father Meurin wrote later that
du Verger "having been falsely persuaded by the French com-
mandant that the English were going to annoy the priests and
the inhabitants and take their goods, had sold everything for
a song, in order to take with him what he could, rather than
leave it to the English.”66 This fine property went first to one
Lagrange, who died insolvent soon afterward. He had, how-
ever, already lost it at cards to one Jautard, who fled the country.
These disgraceful proceedings reflect the confusion and uncer-
tainty which marked the change of sovereignty.

When the news of the sale reached Quebec steps were
taken to salvage this property, on which the Seminary estimated
it had spent better than forty thousand livres. To this end Father
Pierre Gibault was designated "Procureur General et Special ”
on May 8, 1768, and sent to the Illinois country.67 In a report
made the following year he sent back a very gloomy picture:

That mission formerly so flourishing is nothing any more — not a
slave; the mills are in ruins, the milldams have been carried away by the
waters, the barns have fallen, the orchard for lack of a fence has been
destroyed by animals, which have eaten the bark off the trees clear to the

64 Clarence Edwin Carter, Great Britain and the Illinois Country , 1763-1774 (Washington,
1910), 49.

65 Sebastien Louis Meurin to Boiret, Kaskaskia, June 11, 1768, in Alvord and Carter,
Trade and Politics, 311, 313.

66 Alvord and Carter, Trade and Politics, 311. It was sold Nov. 5, 1763 for 12,500 livres.
The transfer was made over the protests of the villagers, who were concerned about the need
for a house by the Rev. Luc Collt who was staying on. The church itself does not seem to
have been sold. Schlarman, Quebec to New Orleans, 366-70. The legal aspects of the sale by
Forget were argued for years afterwards.

67 St. Clair County Records, Book of Deeds, B, 372. (MSS, St. Clair County Courthouse,
Belleville, 111.)

CHARLES E. PETERSON

i sap — in a word, only the four walls of the house are left, for the roof and
! the floors are not worth anything. Furthermore, the colonel never would
i permit me to rent it, giving as his reason that he was keeping it to make
a barracks.68

Gibault liked the situation so little that he went on down to
Kaskaskia to live.69

The founding of St. Louis, in February of 1764, was the
real turning point of Cahokia’s career. Captain Bossu had
called Cahokia "the center of commerce of New France, or
Louisiana, which is considerable in furs.”70 But St. Louis was
to take its place. The new establishment was located on the
opposite bank just a few miles above, and under the able and
energetic leadership of Pierre Laclede it soon became the me-
tropolis of the Upper Valley.

Laclede’s party arrived from New Orleans late in 1763,
and spent the winter at Fort de Chartres. To get settlers for St.
Louis, Laclede and Neyon de Villiers, the commandant, con-
spired to empty the French villages on the east bank, in spite of
the British efforts to preserve them. Some of the habitants went
down the river to New Orleans, many others crossed the river
to Ste. Genevieve and St. Louis. As one British officer com-
plained:

The French have many Agents here, that are constantly Employed
in putting the worst and most foreign Constructions, on every Transac-
tion, in order to prejudice the minds of the few Inhabitants, that remains
here against the English Government, and to induce them to leave their
Settlements, and go over to the other Side of the River, to the new Settle-
ments they are forming there. The great attention they give to this new
Colony, appears very Extraordinary ....

There is many houses with Lands belonging to them, abandoned by
the French, who went off without paying any regard to an order Captain
Stirling Published here.71

68 Pierre Gibault to Jean Olivier Briand, Oct., 1769, in Alvord and Carter, Trade and
Politics , 614-15-

69 John Gilmary Shea, Life and Times of the Most Rev. John Carroll (New York, 1888), 125.

70 Bossu, Travels Through . . . Louisiana , I: 159. According to John Reynolds, Cahokia
surpassed Kaskaskia in the Indian trade. Reynolds, Pioneer History, 34.

71 Robert Farmar to Thomas Gage, Dec. 16-19, 1765, in Alvord and Carter, New Regime,

134.

NOTES ON OLD CAHOKIA

Many cattle and much grain were carried across the river at
night. The British did not have enough troops to police the
ferries. Even parts of houses were carried away. "If the gentlest
methods are not used with those that Stay,” wrote Captain
Stirling, "we shall lose them too.”72 Emigres from Cahokia
made up a large part of St. Louis and Prairie a Catalan (later
Carondelet) and even some of the Indians went along.73

Among the reasons for the exodus was the fear of Indians,
who were rising against the British throughout the West in
what is now called "Pontiac’s Conspiracy.” Hostile tribes along
the Mississippi had been able to delay the British Army’s enter-
ing the Illinois country for over a year and a half. A great coun-
cil was held at Fort de Chartres in the late summer of 1766, and
many presents were distributed, but that quieted the tribes for
only a short interval.74

A celebrated event of this period was the assassination of
Pontiac at Cahokia on April 20, 1769. The famous Ottawa chief
had come down the Mississippi "to trade and talk and drink.”
On that day, as he left a store in the village where he had been
trading, he was beaten and stabbed to death by one of the local
Peoria Indians.75

In the autumn Cahokia was alarmed when a band of Mis-
souri Indians and nineteen canoes of the Sauk and Fox tribes
were reported coming to the place.76 That such warnings were
not all idle threats was proved the following year when three
white men were killed there by Indians in disguise. The village
stood at arms and a detachment was sent up from Fort de
Chartres to assist in its defense.77

72 Thomas Stirling to Thomas Gage, Dec. 15, 1765, in Alvord and Carter, New Regime,
125-

73 One account of the establishment of St. Louis may be found in Charles E. Peterson,
“Colonial St. Louis: Part I,” Bulletin of the Missouri Historical Society, Vol. Ill, no. 3 (April,
1947), 94-111.

74 Carter, Great Britian, 53, 59, 60.

75 For the latest version of this event see Howard H. Peckham, Pontiac and the Indian
Uprising (Princeton, 1947), 309-18.

76 Clarence Edwin Carter, The Correspondence of General Thomas Gage (New Haven, 1931),
1:239.

77 Gage to Hillsborough, New York, Aug. 18, 1770. Ibid. I: 266. The old French

CHARLES E. PETERSON

In spite of such troubles Cahokia continued to exist. Of it
Captain Henry Gordon noted on August 31, 1766, "Here are
43 Families of French who live well, & so might three Times
the number as there is a great Quantity of arable clear Land
of the best Soil near it. There is likewise 20 Cabbins of Peioria
Indians left here.”78 Captain Philip Pittman, a British engineer
at Fort de Chartres, also described Cahokia at this time:

The village ... is long and straggling, being three quarters of a
mile from one end to the other; it contains forty-five dwelling-houses, and
a church near its center. The situation is not well chosen, as in the floods
it is generally overflowed two or three feet. . . . The inhabitants of this
place depend more on hunting, and their Indian trade, than on agriculture,
as they scarcely raise corn enough for their own consumption : they have
a great deal of poultry and good stocks of horned cattle. . . . What is called
the fort is a small house standing in the center of the village; it differs in
nothing from the other houses except in being one of the poorest; it was
formerly enclosed with high pallisades, but these were torn down and
burnt. Indeed a fort at this place could be of but little use.79

To the British and the Americans the opportunities of seiz-
ing the old French fur trade at first seemed very bright. Eastern
newspapers advised the traders of Pennsylvania, Maryland, and
Virginia to hurry. "They cannot be too early in building their
craft at Fort Pitt,” urged the Virginia Gazette, "indeed, the
adventurers of next year have no time to lose.”80 There was a
general rush to the West. Philadelphia traders seem to have
been prominent among those who came.81 But as it turned out
the results were disappointing. Trade with the Indians was

militia was reformed for defense against the Indians. Carter, Great Britain , 62. The Virginia
Gazette (April 23, 1772) carried a letter with a Kaskaskia dateline (Jan. 17, 1772) summarizing
troubles with the Kickapoos • ‘ ‘Since we have had Possession of the Illinois Country, the above
Nation of Indians, with their Adherents, have taken seven English Men and one Woman
Prisoners, scalped one soldier of the 18th Regiment alive, killed and scalped upwards of thirty
Englishmen from the Age of eighteen to thirty Years, and robbed English Merchants Boats
and Stores to the Value of Ten Thousand Pounds.”

78 Alvord and Carter, New Regime, 299. A census of Cahokia in 1767 showed that it then
had sixty families. Ibid., 469. Thomas Hutchins, here shortly afterward, reported ”50
houses, many of them well built, and 300 inhabitants, possessing 80 Negroes, and large stocks
of black Cattle, Swine &c.” Thomas Hutchins, A Topographical Description of Virginia, Penn-
sylvania, Maryland and North Carolina (Cleveland, 1904), 109.

79 Pittman, The Present State of European Settlements, 92.

80 Virginia Gazette, Mar. 7, 1766.

81 Notably Franks and Company and Baynton, Wharton and Morgan. Carter, Great
Britain, 74, 83-

NOTES ON OLD CAHOKIA

under the management of Sir William Johnson,82 represented
in the Illinois country by Edward Cole.83 The hostility of the
Indians to the British drove much of the fur trade along with
the French across the river into what had become Spanish ter-
ritory after the treaty of Fontainebleau in 1762. Officials of
both sides complained of traders of the other nation invading
their domains.84 Decrees were passed against contraband trad-
ing, and there were charges, countercharges, and confiscations
by both the British and Spanish authorities. These troubles
were to continue until well into the Revolutionary War.85 In
the end, the Spanish seem to have got most of the furs because
New Orleans buyers paid a higher price for them than the
Americans.86

A doleful letter from a trader in Cahokia to an associate in
Detroit provides a picture of conditions in 1773 :

The Army Left this [place] Last Spring except One Company which
stays at Kaskaskia 70 miles from this [place]. The Army’s retireing so
Suddenly is the reason of my Stay in this Contrary [sic] at present or
should have returned from this [place] by the way of La Prairie du Chiens
Last fall — I say the unexpected demand of the Troops from this [place]
was a Loss to me of 16,000 Livres or Better — and has put my Affairs in
such confusion that the Lord Knows when I shall Leave this Miserable
Country I call [it] miserable for two reasons first as their are no Troops
in this Village nor no Manner of Justice Established ever[y] person pays
when he Pleases. Secondly we are so subject Dayly to the insults of Sav-
ages— that you dare scarce say your Life is your own.87

The next year, by the Quebec Act, the Illinois country was
again united with Canada, and many of the Easterners with-
drew.88

82 Carter, Great Britain , 18.

83 Cole was appointed commissary of Indian affairs on April 17, 1766. He was in the
Illinois country from about Aug., 1766 to early in 1769. Carter, Great Britain , 57, 59, 74.

81 These troubles, as revealed in Spanish documents, are described in A. P. Nasatir, “The
Anglo-Spanish Frontier in the Illinois Country During the American Revolution, 1779-1783.”
Jour. III. State Hist. Soc., Vol. XXI, no. 3 (Oct., 1928), 291-97.

85 Early in 1771, General Gage was ordered to mobilize an army to attack New Orleans,
Carter, Great Britain , 101.

86 Carter, Great Britain , 94.

87 John R. Hanson to M. Gilliaume Edgar, Cahokia, Jan. 10, 1773. Photostat of MS,
New York Public Library.

88 Clarence W. Alvord, ed., Cahokia Records, 1778-1790 ( Illinois Historical Collections , II,
Springfield, 1907), xxvii-xxxi.

CHARLES E. PETERSON

British rule had been very unpopular among the habi-
tants in these years, though the latter were not deliberately
oppressed.89 The military government of General Thomas
Gage, headquartered in New York, was too far away and, in
the Illinois country, proved to be defective both in theory and
practice. Some shady characters high in the area command at
Fort de Chartres90 made the plight of the French very unhappy,
which helps explain why the settlements on the east bank lost
so much ground in this period. Although a number of schemes
for colonization of the region were backed by such prominent
persons as Benjamin Franklin and George Washington, the
British government remained opposed to the settlement of the
West.91 Of the Illinois country villages, Cahokia alone seems
to have grown during this time — and only by the illicit entry
of more traders from Canada.92

(Part Two will appear in the June issue of this Journal .)

83 A proclamation dated Dec. 30, 1764, and signed in New York City by General Gage,
J promised freedom of religion as well as freedom to trade (after taking the oath of allegiance).
This was announced on the arrival of Stirling in 1765. Carter, Great Britain , 17, 46-47.

90 Carter, Great Britain , 60. Colonel Reed charged excessive fees for the oath of alle-
! giance and marriage licenses and exacted large fines and imprisonment for minor offenses.

| Lieutenant Colonel Wilkins resigned under fire.

91 Carter, Great Britain , 105-35- Clarence W. Alvord and Clarence Edwin Carter, eds..
Invitation Serieuse aux Habitants des Illinois , etc. (Providence, 1908), xiii.

92 Gage to Hillsborough, New York, Jan. 6, 1770, Carter, Correspondence of General Thomas
Gage , I: 244.

PLAINSMAN FROM ILLINOIS

BY CLARENCE S. PAINE

HERE is perhaps no character of the frontier of the sixties

and seventies about whom more controversy has raged and
about whom more legends have been woven than James Butler
Hickok, better known as Wild Bill. Tales and so-called biog-
raphies of him have been myriad since the appearance of the
account in Harper’s Magazine of February, 1867, by one Colo-
nel George Ward Nichols and supposedly based upon an
interview with Wild Bill in Springfield, Missouri, shortly after
the close of the Civil War. These many accounts run the gamut
of literary types from the dime novels of the seventies, with
little or no basis in fact, and the modern western pulp maga-
zines, often with even less, to the efforts of the sometimes
reputable novelist-historian Emerson Hough, the historian
William Elsey Connelley, onetime superintendent of the
Kansas State Historical Society, and the biographer Frank J.
Wilstach.

In his book, The Story of the Outlaw,1 Hough made little
or no contribution to our knowledge of Wild Bill. Both Con-
nelley, in his posthumously published biography of Hickok,2

1 Emerson Hough, The Story of the Outlaw (New York, 1907).

2 William Elsey Connelley, Wild Bill and His Era ; the Life and Adventures of James Butler
Hickok (New York, 1933), 229.

Clarence S . Paine is librarian of the Carnegie Library at Oklahoma
City. An authority on western history , Mr. Paine spoke on this subject
at the Spring Meeting of the Illinois State Historical Society in La Salle ,
May 2, 1947.

CLARENCE S. PAINE

and Wilstach, in his Wild Bill Hickok ,3 made some few con-
tributions. Unfortunately, however, Connelley’s account comes
; to us almost without any documentation, due to his daugh-
ter’s distaste for footnotes and the other impedimenta of schol-
arship. It was she who put the final touches to her father’s
manuscript after his death. For the most part, however, both
I Connelley and Wilstach
have depended prima-
rily upon the reminis-
; cences of old-timers.

One of these, E. T.

"Doc” Pierce, erstwhile
"physician,” barber, and
| undertaker, has been
j characterized by a long-
time acquaintance as "a
| well-known barber, a
bombast and windjam-
mer deluxe.”4

In 1927, the Nebraska
I State Historical Society
! rekindled the Wild Bill
, controversy with an is-
I sue of its Nebraska His-
| tory Magazine' 5 devoted
to the famous "Wild

I Bill-McCanles Tragedy’ ’ WlLD Bill Hickok

or massacre as it was

i popularly known. The bibliography of writings about Wild
Bill and the publication of previously undiscovered contem-
i porary documents which form a part of that publication are
: extremely valuable. Yet, throughout the account, both the

3 Frank J. Wilstach, Wild Bill Hickok, the Prince of the Pistoleers (New York, 1926), 304.

4 John S. McClintock to Addison E. Sheldon, Supt., Nebraska State Historical Society,
Oct. 23, 1933.

5 Nebraska History Magazine, Vol. X (April-June, 1927), 67-155.

PLAINSMAN FROM ILLINOIS

editor of the magazine and the author of the main article per-
sisted in ignoring or misinterpreting the very sources which
they had brought to light.

There is no doubt that the story of the McCanles fight, as
related by Colonel Nichols in Harper’s, was grossly exagger-
ated. Neither is there any need to doubt that the story told by
the Colonel is essentially as he received it from Hickok himself,
although it is said that Wild Bill later denied this. The tail-tale
tradition of the frontier must be taken into account. It was
fashionable for Westerners to tell such tales to the tenderfeet
and greenhorns from the East. That Hickok was something of
a master of the art can be established from an account in the
Cheyenne [Wyoming] Daily Leader of April 14, 1876, which
reads: "Wild Bill still lingers with us. . . — Bill is in his ele-
ment now-a-days, and makes a business of stuffing newcomers
and tenderfeet of all descriptions with tales of his prowess and
his wonderful discoveries of diamond caves, etc., which he
describes as being located 'up north’/ ’ But if the Harper’s
article is a fantasy so also is Mr. Hansen’s account in the
Nebraska magazine of history.

I shall not retell the story of the Hickok-McCanles fight
except to say that Colonel Nichols, in 1867, made Hickok the
hero and winner of a singlehanded fight with nine heavily
armed ruffians. Sixty years later the Nebraska State Historical
Society did a pretty good job of making Wild Bill a cold-
blooded murderer of three (at least the number was correct)
peace-loving and unarmed citizens of Jefferson County. Neither
version is correct. Wild Bill was an abolitionist. McCanles was
a Virginian, and, according to contemporary accounts, not too
scrupulous. Both were strong-willed men nurtured on the fron-
tier where the only effective law was that of the six-shooter.

Put any two such men down together on the seething Ne-
braska-Kansas-Missouri border in I860 and some altercation
would almost certainly occur. It would become inevitable if,
in addition to those elements, one man, in this instance Hickok,

CLARENCE S. PAINE

were employed by a stage line against which the other, Mc-
Canles, held a grievance. In order to judge, there is no need
even to introduce the circumstantial evidence in the case which
points to the presence of a woman. Many men have become
killers under far less strained circumstances than these and in
a time and place where recourse to law was theirs. In I860,
along the Oregon Trail in southeastern Nebraska, it was a
case of kill or be killed.

No sooner had the Nebraska Historical Society’s account
appeared than the friends of Wild Bill rallied to the cause of
their maligned hero with W. E. Connelley, whose book was
then in preparation, as their champion. That book, when pub-
lished, pictured Wild Bill as possibly the greatest force for law
and order on the frontier of the sixties and seventies. Mean-
while, and quietly aloof from all of this, the state of Illinois
appropriated funds for a monument to this native son of
La Salle County and dedicated it with dignity on August 29,
1930. 6 1 would be the last to debate the appropriateness of that
gesture. I, too, am an admirer of Wild Bill and all of his kind
and I believe that, when his life story is told without distortion
or rancor and against the background of the social and eco-
nomic evolution of his own times, his place in the making
of America will be once and for all secure.

It is not my intention to attempt here to tell the whole story
of Wild Bill’s life. I could not if I would, for I do not know it.
Nor, I believe, does anyone else. Nor shall I retell the many
tales which have been told and retold, growing at each telling
with a propensity akin to the folk tales of Paul Bunyan, Mike
Fink, and Fiebold Fieboldson. Rather, let me try to create a
perspective which will permit an understanding of Wild Bill
and his kind and of the frontier which nurtured them.

The environment of men has always been changing but,
until the early part of the nineteenth century, the rate of that

6 Wallace Rice, “Dedication of the Memorial to James Butler Hickok, Wild Bill,”
Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society , Vol. XXIII, no. 3 (Oct., 1930), 522-36.

PLAINSMAN FROM ILLINOIS

evolution was slow. From one generation to the next the social,
economic, and political change was almost imperceptible.
Thereafter the products and by-products of the industrial revo-
lution and the machine age which it ushered in stepped up that
rate of change to a point where, for the first time in history,
men found themselves leaving a world radically changed from
that into which they had been born. Such was the experience
of Wild Bill Hickok.

The son of William Alonzo and Polly Butler Hickok,
James Butler Hickok was born in 1837 in La Salle County, j
Illinois — then a part of the western frontier of the farmer, i
During the youth’s formative years, when, under normal cir-
cumstances, there would have been created a respect for statu-
tory law, the operations of the lawless though honestly inspired
"Underground Railroad” were common knowledge to him.
William Alonzo’s tavern, the Green Mountain House, was a
station on that route of escape from the slave states.

It was not an uncommon experience for the sons, in com-
pany with their father carrying fugitive slaves to the next sta-
tion, to be pursued by officers of the law with guns blazing.

It was a case of moral right, as viewed by the abolitionists, vs.
statutory law. Under such conditions the concept of the law of
the "Underground” — the six-shooter and the rope — is an easy
one. It was a pattern which recurred throughout the frontier
period wherever there was no statutory law or when that law
seemed, in the minds of people, to fall short of serving their
needs.

It was a law simple to state and to understand and readily
amended to meet the peculiar needs of any community. Witness
the following example:

1. Thieves and robbers will be driven out Qf camp for the first offense —
hung for the second.

2. The man who picks a quarrel had better pick up his traps.

3. Men convicted of murder will be hung on the same day.

4. Passing bogus money will entitle a chap to pass out of town, every-
body taking a kick at him as he goes.

CLARENCE S. PAINE

5. Don’t covet your neighbor’s wife.

6. Lying should be discouraged.

7. Whack up even on all “finds.” 670.°.^

8. No shirking in an Indian fight.

9. All notes of hand must be paid when due, or down goes the maker.

10. Rebellion against the legal authority of the town shoves the rebel

out and confiscates his claim.7

It was a law easy to enforce if one were quick on the
draw, accurate in his aim, and could tie a noose. It was a law
in itself lawless. It was the law which James Butler Hickok
was to invoke upon the rampaging cattle towns of Abilene
and Hays City in the sixties, thereby making easier the ascen-
sion of statutory law enforcement.

Wild Bill’s father died in 1852 and thereafter the youth
was put more and more upon his own. The gradual inroads of
staid society upon the vicinity of his home as the frontier
moved westward, the thrilling stories of the deeds of the Kit
Carsons and Jim Bridgers, and the tales of guerrilla fighting
in Kansas lured his restless nature to that region in 1855 or
’56. Shortly after his arrival in eastern Kansas it is reasonably
certain that he became associated in some capacity with the
famous Free-State guerrilla "army” of Jim Lane.

In March, 1858, he was elected constable of Monticello
Township in Kansas Territory where he had claimed land
which he worked intermittently during the next year or two.
But attempts at tilling the soil apparently proved tedious and
unprofitable and in 1859 and ’60 Hickok was on the Santa Fe
Trail in some capacity as stage driver, freighter, or stock
attendant. It was in the latter role that he was sent to the Rock
Creek Station in Nebraska in 1860-1861. Here, in 1861,
occurred the fight with McCanles.

Leaving Nebraska, Hickok became almost immediately
involved in the Civil War. To the best of my knowledge
there is no documentary evidence of his military service. There
are, however, too many references to that service by those who

7 Laramie [Wyoming Territory] Daily Sentinel , Nov. 1, 1877.

PLAINSMAN FROM ILLINOIS

claimed to have served with him and too many legends of his
deeds to admit of complete denial. It is likely that his serv-
ice was in the capacity of civilian scout, spy, and guerrilla, in
which case the absence of official records is explainable.

For a year or two following the war, Wild Bill remained
in and around Springfield, Missouri, going from there to
Kansas City and its environs where he had first settled in
1855-1856. In 1866 he served for a brief period as deputy
United States marshal at Fort Riley and during the next
three years saw service as a scout and dispatch rider in the
Indian wars of the border states and territories. His associa-
tion with the command of General Custer was enthusias-
tically recounted by both the General and his wife.

His fame was further attested by the invitation which
Hickok received and accepted to escort Senator Henry Wilson,
of Massachusetts, and party on an excursion over the plains
and mountains in the summer of 1869.

Upon his return from that trip Wild Bill was made peace
officer for the town of Hays, Kansas. According to contempo-
rary accounts he cleaned it up promptly, using his own meth-
ods. His success led to a similar appointment in the rip-roaring
cow town of Abilene in April, 1871. The cattlemen’s heyday
in Abilene was brief. Wild Bill and his guns did their part,
but there was a still more potent force to be reckoned with.
The civilization of the farmer, the businessman, the home, and
church was spreading more rapidly westward. In February,
1871, the Farmer’s Protective Association of Dickinson
County, Kansas, had published a notice "respectfully” re-
questing the Texas cattle drovers to seek some other terminus
for their drive in 1872. The cattlemen acquiesced.

There is no doubt that in the lawless days of Hays,
Abilene, and other frontier communities Wild Bill Hickok
had made a name for himself as a hero, a symbol of "law and
order.” At this time he was described as "quite a gentle-

CLARENCE S. PAINE

man,”8 "a man of about 30 years of age, over 6 feet high,
straight as an arrow with long, black hair hanging over his
shoulders.”9

That Wild Bill foresaw the end of the frontier and tried
to adjust to it is perhaps evident in two abortive attempts to
establish himself in show business which would permit him
to earn a livelihood in this new society. One of these seems
to have ended in financial disaster in Niagara Falls in 1870.
The other, his much publicized appearance with Buffalo Bill
Cody in Ned Buntline’s melodramatic "Scouts of the Plains,”
lasted only a few weeks. Street brawls with New York cabbies
over exorbitant fares, and playfully burning the bare legs of
New York actors (cast in the roles of Indians) with the wad-
dings of blank cartridges proved a poor substitute for life on
the plains.

Wild Bill returned to the West. His search in the frontier
towns for the life he knew and loved soon led him to Wyo-
ming. Surely here, in towns established but four or five years
before, Cheyenne, Laramie, Evanston, there would be a place
for him. But he failed to reckon with the railroad. Into this
new country, for four years the trains had been pouring
women and children, and all the makings of comfortable
homes, modern business and industry, law and order. In less
than a decade society had progressed from the individualistic
order of the hunter, trader, trapper, miner, and cattleman to
a modern collective society replete with barbed wire, plush,
and machines — a society in which women already had gained
the voting franchise. Some idea of the rapidity of that evolu-
tion can be gained from the following article from a Laramie
paper of 1875, about the time that Wild Bill arrived in the
region:

Six years [from date of first issue of Sentinel and, approximately, of
the founding of the town] have made great changes and great improve-

8 J. H. Beadle, Western Wilds and the Wien Who Redeemed Them (Cincinnati, cl 879), 213-

9 Atchison [Kansas] Daily Free Press , Jan. 6, 1868.

PLAINSMAN FROM ILLINOIS

ments in Laramie City. . . . First and foremost we would mention that we
have good society — a good, quiet, orderly community. We don’t believe
there is a single New England village of 2500 or 3000 people . . . that has
as little crime, as little vice and immorality, as little drunkenness and
rowdyism as Laramie City. . . . Our town has fine, nice, elegant churches.
We have the very best or [sic] public graded schools. We have a literary
and Library Association with 1200 or 1500 volumes of standard and choice
literary and miscellaneous works. . . . We have lodges of Masons, Odd
Fellows, Rebecca, Sons of Temperance, Good Templars, etc. . . . Nor are
we destitute of taste in finer matters. There are . . . from twenty to twenty-
five pianos, twice as many organs, (an organ in every church) and a silver
cornet band.

Now most of our merchants have exchanged their shanties and tents
for elegant brick and stone fire-proof blocks with iron fronts. . . . On
Front and Second streets there is a continuous line of buildings for over
a mile in length along each of those streets.

And our little city has for years supported two daily newspapers.

An [sic] now they have insisted upon having and undertake to sup-
port, two weekly papers — and they will do it too.10

Wild Bill was a stranger in a strange land. In Evanston,
Wyoming, he was convicted of riot and assault on the sheriff
and fined $50 and costs.* 11 The city marshal of Cheyenne or-
dered him out of that city under the provisions of a vagrancy
act.12

It was not Wild Bill who was different — it was society.
Most men of his kind were faced with but two alternatives —
adjustment to the new order or escape, either to a new frontier
or through drink. Wild Bill apparently tried everything.

It is likely that his marriage on March 5, 1876, to Agnes
Thatcher Lake and the consequent trip to Cincinnati with her
was a sincere attempt to settle down and adjust to the new
society. It lasted only two weeks, and at the end of that time
he was on his way back to Cheyenne with the avowed inten-
tion of joining the gold rush to the Black Hills, making his
strike, and returning to settle down with his bride.

That was his last frontier. On August 2, while engaged

10 Laramie Daily Sentinel , May 1, 1875-

11 Ibid. , Aug. 4, 1873-

12 Cheyenne [Wyoming Territory] Daily Leader, Aug. 18, 1876.

CLARENCE S. PAINE

in a poker game in one of Deadwood’s saloons, he was shot
from behind by one Jack McCall and died instantly. His work
was done. The law which he and others had brought to the
plains at the point of a six-shooter had surrendered its juris-
diction to the statutory law of the courts. His own murderer
was to die by the hand of those courts a few months later.

Whether Wild Bill could have adjusted himself to the
new era sufficiently to have found happiness and further suc-
cess will never be known. At least he would have continued to
try. Yet, like other great plainsmen, he would have chosen
death with his boots on to the humiliation and infamy suffered
by many of his fellow men who, unable to adapt themselves
to the new life, spent their last days in side shows, as public
wards, or wandering aimlessly about the country, like the
riflemen of Stephen Vincent Benet:

Until, at last, they had to turn again,

Burnt out like their own powder in the quest
Because there was no longer any West.13

Stephen Vincent Benet, Western Star (New York, 1943), 8.

LINCOLN AND THE PEORIA
FRENCH CLAIMS

BY ERNEST E. EAST

AN incident of Indian warfare in 1812 gave rise to the
Peoria French Claims which engaged the attention of
members of Congress, the United States General Land Office,
occupants of downtown lots in the city of Peoria, and both
Illinois and Federal courts for a period that extended over a
half-century.

A lawless commander of Illinois Territorial Militia
evicted the inhabitants and burned part of the French village
of Peoria. The village was abandoned. The French petitioned
Congress for redress and, seven years later, the national law-
makers passed the first of two acts under which the injured
inhabitants were made eligible to receive title to lots which
they had occupied in the village. Surveys which were neces-
sary for confirmation of the claims were delayed until 1837.
Three years more elapsed before the surveys were approved.
Six years later the United States issued the first of twenty-four
patents for lots claimed by the French under rules laid down
by the commissioner of the General Land Office.

By this time many of the original claimants had been re-
moved by death. Most of the survivors, and the legal repre-

Ernest E. East is a director and -past president of the Illinois State
Historical Society. He has written many articles on Peoria , Chicago ,
and Abraham Lincoln.

LINCOLN AND THE PEORIA FRENCH CLAIMS

sentatives of deceased claimants, had disposed of their inter-
ests in the lots to other persons, including speculators.

Congress, in making restitution to the former inhabitants
of Peoria, tossed into the lap of the courts the question of the
legal title to lots which had been for many years in possession
of American settlers. Litigation which arose over the claims
vexed state and United States courts for nearly twenty years.
Leaders of the bar in Peoria, Chicago, Quincy, and Spring-
field in Illinois, and even in other states, were engaged in no
fewer than forty-five separate suits, most of them actions in
ejectment filed by the French claimants. Abraham Lincoln
was counsel in four or more cases.

French traders, engages, and small farmers had lived
among friendly Indians on the shore of Peoria Lake (an
expansion of the Illinois River) for more than a cen-
tury. Peoria (variously spelled) was a village of ninety
to one hundred inhabitants. British agents in the War of 1812
encouraged Indians to make hostile demonstrations against
American settlers.

French Peoria was situated on the westerly shore of the
lake between the present Liberty and Oak streets in the city
of Peoria. Earlier French military posts or settlements in this
region were Fort Crevecoeur ( 1680 ) / Fort Saint Louis ( 1692 ) ,1 2
and Old Peorias Fort and Village (1730). 3 A later settlement
was Opa (au Pe) a post established by the American Fur
Company in 1818 on the left bank of the Illinois River three
miles below the outlet of Peoria Lake. It was known as
French Trading House in early Peoria and Tazewell County
records. The village was platted as Wesley City in 1836. The
name was changed to Creve Coeur in 1921.

1 Arthur M. Lagron, “Fort Crevecoeur,’’ Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society,
Vol. 5, no. 4 (Jan., 1913), 451-57.

2 C. W. Alvord, The Illinois Country 1673-1818 (The Centennial History of Illinois, Spring-
field, 1920), 100.

3 Twenty-four former inhabitants of “Pioria” petitioned Congress in 1803 for legisla-
tion which would permit them to make claim for lots and lands (photostat in the Illinois
Historical Survey, Urbana); Jedidiah Morse, The American Gazetteer (Boston, 1797). Old
Peorias Fort and Village was abandoned in 1796 or 1797.

ERNEST E. EAST

Governor Ninian Edwards, of Illinois Territory, organ-
ized and accompanied an expedition of mounted troops which
attacked the Potawatomi village of Chief Black Partridge at
the head of Peoria Lake in October, 1812. Twenty-five to thirty
Indians were killed without loss to the militia. Captain
Thomas E. Craig of Shawneetown was dispatched with his

LINCOLN AND THE PEORIA FRENCH CLAIMS

company and supplies in two boats to co-operate with the land
forces. He was delayed and arrived at Peoria Lake several days
after the troops under Colonel William Russell and Governor
Edwards had returned to Fort Russell, which had been estab-
lished near Edwardsville.4

Craig found that half of the Peoria French had fled to the
southern settlements. His men looted vacant houses, including
the warehouse of Thomas Forsyth, United States Indian sub-
agent, who maintained a trading house at Peoria in partner-
ship with, his half-brother, John Kinzie, of Chicago.5

Forsyth was absent when Craig came. He was returning by
boat from St. Louis where he had gone with Lieutenant Linai
T. Helm, whom he had ransomed from an Indian captor after
the Fort Dearborn massacre.6 Forsyth, upon his return, demand-
ed that Craig restore his goods and those of other inhabitants
which had been removed to one of the commander’s boats.
Only a portion of the loot was returned by the troops. Indians
in the night fired on Craig’s boats, and the commander angrily
accused the French of having knowledge of the Indians’ in-
tentions. This was denied. Craig then "arrested” the inhabi-
tants. He set fire to four houses and to four barns, two of the
latter containing wheat. He forced forty-one men, women, j
and children to enter two open boats in which he conducted
them to Savage’s Ferry, near Alton. Forsyth was refused per- |
mission to leave men to care for two hundred head of cattle I
and other property. Governor Edwards ordered the release of :
the prisoners, but not until they had been held four days.

Thirteen former inhabitants of Peoria petitioned Con-

4 Frank E. Stevens, “Illinois in the War of 1812-1814,’’ Transactions of the Illinois State
Historical Society for the Year 1904 (Springfield, 1904), 62-197-

5 The Peoria Journal, Aug. 30, 1938. Forsyth’s manuscript is reprinted from the Draper
manuscripts at the Wisconsin State Historical Library, Madison, Wis. Other Forsyth papers
are in the library of the Missouri Historical Society, St. Louis, Mo.

6 Forsyth to John Kinzie, Sept. 24, 1812, William Woodbridge Papers (MSS, Public
Library, Detroit, Mich.). Lieutenant Helm was second in command at Fort Dearborn on
Aug. 15, 1812. He was wounded in one foot and made captive by Mittatass, probably an
Ottawa warrior. Forsyth ransomed Helm at Peoria with two mares and “a keg of stuff when
practicable.’’

ERNEST E. EAST

gress in 1813 for redress on account of the outrage.7 Congress,
in 1820, approved an act which directed the register of the
land office at Edwardsville — then Edward Coles — to examine
claims of former occupants of lots in French Peoria.8 Claims
to seventy lots and out-lots in both the old and new village
sites were filed by thirty-two individuals or their heirs, al-
though the earlier village had ceased to exist before 1812. A
second act, approved in 1823, confirmed these claims with
certain limitations, and directed the land office to make surveys
of the lots.9 The Secretary of the Treasury was directed to
issue patents; and patents to lots, upon a proper showing, were
issued by the land office.10

Robert Forsyth,* 11 son of Thomas, received title to one lot
through inheritance and purchase. He also purchased the in-
terests of a number of other claimants. Claims to lots in the
younger French village were laid principally on two fractional
quarter sections which were purchased from the United States
through original entry by Charles Ballance12 and John F.

7 Simeon De Witt Drown, Drown s Record and Historical View of Peoria (Peoria, 1850),
61-62. The petition doubtless was written by Forsyth. Signers besides Forsyth were A. Le
Claire, Antoine Bourbonne, Pierre LeVasseur, Charles LeBelle, Hipolite Maillet, Louison
Pensannoe, Antoine Lapance, Francois Racine, Sr.; Francois Racine, Jr.; Joseph Guerette,
Francis Bouche, and Felix Fontaine.

8 United States Statutes at Large, 16 Cong., 1 Sess., Chap., 125. “An Act for the relief of
the inhabitants of the village of Peoria, in the state of Illinois.”

9 United States Statutes at Large, 17 Cong., 2 Sess., Chap., 67. “An Act to confirm certain
claims to lotts [sic] in the village of Peoria, in the state of Illinois.”

10 Edward Coles, register of the land office at Edwardsville, received proof of claims to
lots of both the old and new villages. Coles’ manuscript report is in the office of the Illinois
Auditor of Public Accounts, Springfield. This report has been printed in C. W. Alvord, Gov-
ernor Edward Coles, ( Illinois Historical Collections, XV, Springfield, 1920), 222-53- The U. S.
Supreme Court in Hall, Plaintiff in Error v. Papin, 24 How. (U. S.) 132 laid down the rule that
the act of March, 1823, applied only to the new village. The General Land Office appears to
have refused to issue patents to lots in Old Peoria. Surveys were made by Joseph C. Brown in
April and May, 1837. See Illinois Claims, General Land Office, Washington, D. C., Vol. 24,
4-8.

11 Robert Forsyth was born in French Peoria on July 18, 1808, according to his deposi-
tion in Papin v. Kellogg (Circuit Court of Peoria County, 1854). He platted Forsyth’s addi-
tion to Peoria in 1858. Robert Forsyth’s biographer in William Hyde and Howard L. Conrad,
eds., Encyclopedia of the History of St. Louis (St. Louis, 1899), II: 811, states that: “As a land
dealer he had at one time eleven complicated suits in the courts of Missouri and Illinois.
Abraham Lincoln was his attorney in the latter state.”

12 Charles Ballance was born in Madison, Ky., on Nov. 10, 1800; came to Peoria in 1831
and opened a law office in 1832. He was county surveyor in 1834 and resurveyed the Original
Town of the City of Peoria which was first surveyed by William S. Hamilton, son of Alexander
Hamilton of New York. Ballance in 1835 engaged in a gun battle with Isaac Underhill and

LINCOLN AND THE PEORIA FRENCH CLAIMS

Bogardus,13 respectively. The former platted his tract as Bal-
lance’s addition to the city of Peoria. Bogardus sold his tract to
Lewis Bigelow14 and Isaac Underhill1" who platted it as Bige-
low and Underhill’s addition. The land office anticipated the
French claims, and patents to Ballance and Bogardus were
issued subject to the act confirming the claims.

Ballance was both defendant and attorney in a number of
title suits and also attorney for several other defendants in
actions brought by the French. The claimants and their agents
were not eager to recover physical possession of the lots. They
demanded, and received in a number of cases, substantial
sums to release their interests. The litigation was financed
mostly by men who speculated in the French claims, chief
among whom was Robert Forsyth. Opposed to them were
Ballance and others who owned or leased city lots covered by
the French claim lots on which Americans had erected busi-
ness houses, then in the heart of Peoria’s commercial area.

Ejectment suits brought by the claimants were filed as
early as 1848 in the Circuit Court of Peoria County, and soon
thereafter in the United States Circuit Court at Chicago, which
then had original jurisdiction. New actions were begun at
intervals over a period of ten years. At one time, three eject-
ment suits brought by Robert Forsyth against Charles Ballance
were pending in the Circuit Court of Peoria County. Fifteen
cases were appealed from the United States Circuit and Dis-
trict courts to the Supreme Court, two going up twice. No
fewer than thirty-six suits originated in the Circuit Court of

one of Underhill’s hirelings for possession of a disputed lot. Nobody was hit. Ballance held
the battlefield. He was intimately acquainted with Abraham Lincoln. From Springfield, on
July 27, 1855, Lincoln wrote to Ballance acknowledging receipt of $20.00 and mentioning a
Peoria French claim in which Browning and Lincoln were engaged (see Huntington Library
MSS. Pac. 60). He died at Peoria on Aug. 10, 1872.

13 John L. Bogardus (1790-1838) was a native of New York state and Peoria’s first
lawyer.

14 Lewis Bigelow was born in Petersham, Mass., 1785. He was a lawyer; member
Seventeenth Congress; moved to Peoria, 1832; appointed Circuit Clerk, 1835; died, 1838.

15 Isaac Underhill was born in Westchester County, N. Y., 1808; moved to Peoria in
1833 and engaged in large farming operations and pork-packing. He was president of the
Peoria & Bureau Valley Rail Road Company; organizer of the Marseilles Bridge Co., and the
Land and Water Power Co. at Marseilles, 111. He moved to Texas and died in Austin, 1875.

ERNEST E. EAST

Peoria County and of these eight or more were decided in
the Illinois Supreme Court.

Lincoln unexpectedly entered a case called up in United
States Circuit Court in Chicago. He appears to have volun-
teered to act in the place of Ballance when a case in which
the Peorian was attorney was called for trial in Ballance’s
absence. This was an ejectment suit which was begun in 1850
and finally decided more than sixteen years later.16 Robert
Forsyth brought the action against James Barton to recover
possession of the lot designated as lot No. 27 on the plat of
New Peoria.17 This French lot touched seven lots in Bigelow
and Underhill’s addition.

Three trials were held in the United States Circuit Court.
Judge Thomas Drummond found first for the defendant.
Upon a new trial, a jury gave its verdict to the plaintiff. Upon
a third trial, also by jury, the plaintiff again was the victor.

Barton was a transient. Attorney Ballance was Barton’s
landlord and the real defendant although the court denied his
motion that he be substituted for Barton. Ballance alleged
numerous errors in his appeal but the United States Supreme
Court narrowed his case to a single exception and affirmed
the judgment of the Circuit Court.

The case in the Supreme Court was argued by Ballance
and Reverdy Johnson, of Baltimore, for the plaintiff in error.
Archibald Williams,18 of Quincy, represented the defendant in
error. Chief Justice Roger B. Taney delivered the opinion of
the court at its December term, 1857. The court’s mandate
giving possession to Forsyth was issued in July, 1858.

Four years later, Ballance reopened the fight with an

16 Barton , Plaintiff in Error v. Forsyth, 20 How. (U.S.) 532; Barton v. Forsyth, 5 Wal.
(U.S.) 190.

17 Lot 27 on the plat of New Peoria was occupied by Michael LaCroix, a trader, who
died in 1821. A patent was issued to his legal representatives. LaCroix had three children by
Catherine Dubuque, “illegitimate but recognized bv him’’ see Forsythe v. Ballance, 6 McLean
(111.) 562.

18 Archibald Williams was born in Montgomery County, Ky., 1801; moved to Quincy,
111., 1829; Senator and Representative in 111. Gen. Assembly for three terms; U.S. District At-
torney; appointed by President Lincoln District Judge of Kansas. Williams died at Quincy,
1863.

48 LINCOLN AND THE PEORIA FRENCH CLAIMS

application for a writ of restitution which appears to have been
issued "improvidentially” by the United States Circuit Court.
Forsyth in 1864 obtained from Judge Drummond an order
quashing the writ and reinstating Forsyth in possession of lot
No. 27. Ballance again filed an appeal but the Supreme Court
in a long opinion declined to take jurisdiction. The decision
was announced at the December term, 1866.

William C. Goudy,19 formerly of Lewistown, then of
Chicago, appeared for Forsyth when the second appeal case
was argued in the Supreme Court.

Attorney Ballance complained that Forsyth took advan-
tage of him by calling up the case before Judge Drummond in
the court below during Ballance’s absence. Ballance presented
a history of the case in a pamphlet20 containing an abstract of
the record, which was printed in or about 1866. The date of
Lincoln’s appearance in Drummond’s court seems to have been
February 1, 1853, although the Springfield lawyer’s presence
in Chicago on that day is not clearly indicated.

Ballance asserted that Forsyth had nothing more than a ;
pretense of title. He continued:

Judge Drummond, who has to this day escaped the charge of being ;
partial to the side of these cases I represent, decided that the Plaintiff had ;
no title whatever, and gave judgment against him, [Forsyth] and I |
thought that was the end of it; but subsequently, within a year, but with- \
out my knowledge, he paid the cost, docketed the case, as by our eject-
ment law he had a right to do, and called it up, or it was called up for j
trial. Mr. Lincoln, who was since President of the United States, was
present and remonstrated with the Court and Forsyth’s Attorneys against j
trying the case in my absence, and without my knowledge, and said I was J
expected there the next day; but the Judge ruled the case to trial, where- ||
upon Mr. Lincoln told them he knew nothing of the case, and had not j
my title papers, but if they ruled him into trial in that manner, he would j
sit by and watch them, and take any advantage of them he could. After
they had proceeded in the trial some length, they asked him to admit

19 William C. Goudy was born in Indiana, 1824; graduate of Illinois College, Jackson-
ville; practiced law at Lewistown; State’s Attorney and State Senator; moved to Chicago
where he died, 1893.

20 A copy of Ballance’s report to the U. S. Supreme Court is owned by the Illinois State
Historical Library. It bears no date, no place.

ERNEST E. EAST

possession of the premises at the commencement of the suit, which I had,
to save costs, done on the former trial, (proof of possession being in those
days necessary,) but this he declined to do, and they would have been
driven to a nonsuit had not Mr. Lincoln, out of abundant good nature,

I consented to a continuance.

William Goudy, on behalf of Forsyth, also took a gloomy
view of the situation. His brief, quoted from this same pam-
phlet, reads, in part:

This suit was commenced in 1850, and was thrice tried in the Circuit
Court, and once heard in this Court. The defeated party sought to cir-
cumvent their successful adversary and snatch from him the fruits of his
judgment. The possession was, notwithstanding such device, transferred
to the defendant in error. By some means not shown by the record, Bal-
lance got a writ and thereby was restored to the possession, and afterward
i the Court corrected its erroneous action and executed fully the judgment
and mandates of this Court. So far as the proceedings in this suit are con-
: cerned, we are now in the seventeenth year of its life. Is it not time it should
rest?

Forsyth’s attorney goes on to say that Ballance in the
| name of his agents, after failing in the United States Supreme
| Court, brought two suits in the Circuit Court of Peoria County
in an effort to regain possession of the lot in question. Goudy
continues:

Notwithstanding these appeals to the State tribunals to get back
j the possession from Forsythe \_sic] given by the United States Marshal
under the process of the Court, Ballance comes into the Circuit Court of
I the United States with his motion to recover the same possession of the
i same property; and after being defeated, he is now asking this honorable
Court to aid him in this unjust effort.

If it were possible to stay this litigation I would appeal to your
Honors to do so, but no earthly power will ever be powerful enough to
stop the controversy in regard to the Peoria French claims. We can only
hope that it will not descend to the next generation.

Orville Hickman Browning,21 of Quincy, and Lincoln

21 Orville Hickman Browning was born in Kentucky, 1806; admitted to the bar in 1831
and moved to Quincy in the same year; Black Hawk War soldier; State Senator, 1836-1843.
Browning was appointed to fill the unexpired term of Stephen A. Douglas, deceased, in the
I U.S. Senate, serving 1861-1863; appointed by President Johnson as Secretary of the Interior,
I serving 1866-1869, during part of which time he also acted as Attorney General; resumed law
| practice in Quincy and died there, 1881.

LINCOLN AND THE PEORIA FRENCH CLAIMS

appeared for the defendant in Joseph L. Papin v. William
Hall,22 which came before Judge Drummond in United States
Circuit Court in July, 1855. Julius Manning23 and Amos L.
Merriman,24 of Peoria, and Archibald Williams, of Quincy, !
represented the plaintiff. The jury members were unable to
agree. Subsequently, however, a verdict was found for the
plaintiff. The defendant appealed to the United States
Supreme Court, complaining that the lower court erred in
refusing to give certain instructions. The upper court reversed
the Circuit Court and remanded the case with directions for
a new trial. Browning presented a printed argument for Hall,
the plaintiff in error, in the Supreme Court.

Lincoln and Archibald Williams represented Robert
Forsyth in a losing suit against the city of Peoria which was
tried in the United States District Court at Chicago. Orville
Hickman Browning won the case for the defendant and left a
record of his participation in his diary. Testimony was pre-
sented on July 11, 1855. Argument was begun on the follow-
ing day and completed on July 13. The jury brought in a ver-
dict for the city on the fourth day of the trial.25

"This case was submitted to the jury last night,” said the
Peoria Weekly Democratic Press:

Judge [John] McLean delivered his charge to the jury somewhat;
strongly for the defense. . . . The plaintiff lays claim to a certain portion j
of land now occupied and used as Bridge street in the city of Peoria, under ;
an old grant from Congress. The defense set up that that portion of land 1
for the street in question was formerly part of an old state road and there- j

22 Peoria Weekly Republican, July 27, 1855, repiinted from the Chicago Tribune ; Theodore
Calvin Pease and James G. Randall, eds., The Diary of Orville Hickman Browning ( Illinois His-
torical Collections , XX, 1925), I: 193, 389; 24 How. (U.S.) 132.

23 Julius Manning was born in Canada near Chateaugay, N. Y.; attended Middlebury
College, Vt.; began practice of law in Knoxville, 111.; county judge and representative in 111.
Gen. Assembly; removed to Peoria, 1853; delegate to the State Constitutional Convention,
1862; died at Knoxville, 1862.

24 Amos Lee Merriman and his brother, Halsey O. Merriman, were partners in law [
practice at Peoria. Halsey O. died in 1854. Amos Lee formed a partnership with Julius Man-
ning. Merriman was elected judge of the circuit court of Peoria County in 1861 and served
until late in 1863 when he resigned and moved to Washington, D. C.

25 Pease and Randall, eds., Diary of Browning, I: 190-92. Browning’s diary for the later
years mentions three ocassions on which he met Mr. and Mrs. Forsyth socially. Forsyth’s
legal residence was in St. Louis but he lived in Chicago and also in Peoria part of the time.

ERNEST E. EAST

fore condemned for the use of the state. Plaintiff lays claim for damages,
and holds that the state road was only four rods or 60 feet wide, whereas
the street is 80 feet wide. Defense set up that damages for land con-
demned for the state should have been claimed somewhere in the neigh-
borhood of the year 1833, and claims have been extinguished by the statute
of limitations. Verdict for defense. An appeal probably will be taken
to the United States Supreme Court by plaintiff.26

Justice John McLean and Judge Thomas Drummond
presided at this term of court. Browning’s diary records that
Judges Bellamy Storer and Oliver M. Spencer of the Superior
Court of Cincinnati, Ohio, were "on the bench” with McLean
and Drummond. Browning also relates that Lincoln, Williams,
and himself on July 11, "took tea at Blackwell’s,” doubtless
at the home of Attorney Robert S. Blackwell of Chicago, who
earlier had read law in Browning’s office at Quincy.

Attorney Browning, who in I860 got a fee of $2,500 in a
contested divorce case, appears to have received $25 for his
successful defense of the Forsyth suit against the city of
Peoria.27 City councilmen on July 28, 1855, allowed a bill of
$25 presented by Charles Ballance "for amt. paid by him to
O. H. Browning counsel fees.” Ballance then was mayor of
Peoria and it is not unlikely that he assisted Browning in the
trial since his own personal interests lay in resisting the French
claims.

Later in 1855, Lincoln prepared for a further study of the
French claims. Under date of October 10, he wrote from

26 Peoria Weekly Democratic Press, July 25, 1855- Reprinted from Chicago Times. ^ The
French claim lot designated as No. 2 covered the intersection of Bridge and Water streets.
The United States conveyed this lot by patent to the legal representatives of Augustin Roque.
Victore Galarnean and three other heirs of Roque conveyed their interest in the lot to Theo-
dore Papin of St. Louis for $45- Papin sold to Forsyth for $1,200. Forsyth sold three parcels
of the lot for $5,250, and he also sold a fourth parcel for which the consideration is not shown
by the records of the Peoria County Recorder (Book Y, 520). Forsyth appears not to have
appealed the case.

27 Journal of the Proceedings of the City Council of the City of Peoria 1853-1858 , 227. Subsequent
entries indicate that Forsyth threatened or brought actions against the city. Alderman John
T. Lindsay, an attorney, was allowed $57-45 by the Council “for money advanced by him for
costs and council fees in the case of Forsythe vs. City.’’ In March, 1856, Norman H. Purple,
former Illinois Supreme Court justice, was retained by the city in the Forsyth case. Julius
Manning three months earlier had been appointed city attorney but, according to the council
record, he had previously represented Forsyth in the United States Circuit Court case against
the city, a relation which appears to have disqualified him from representing the city.

LINCOLN AND THE PEORIA FRENCH CLAIMS

Springfield to the Surveyor General in St. Louis, Missouri, as
follows: "Will you please send me a statement of each quarter
Section, and fractional quarter Section, upon which, by
Brown’s survey, any Peoria French Claim is laid? Your rea-
sonable charge for the same shall be promptly paid.”28

(Pc# /fS'S'

r 7 4JYYY,

&S. ^

Lincoln's Letter to the Surveyor General

Lincoln probably received a copy of the plat of the "New
Village of Peoria” by which name the General Land Office dis-
tinguished this village from Old Peoria. No patents had been
issued to persons claiming eight lots in the older village. The
Surveyor General’s office charged Lincoln a fee of $4.00 for
its service and payment from him was received on October 15.

Lincoln filed a brief on behalf of Robert Forsyth who
won a suit in the United States Supreme Court for possession
of a historic lot in New Peoria which had been occupied by
Thomas Forsyth, father of the litigant. Robert Forsyth was
the appellant. The appellees were John Reynolds, Josiah H.
McClure, and John McDougal. The case went up on appeal
from the United States Circuit Court and was decided by the
upper court at its December term, 1853.

28 Lincoln’s letter is in the office of the Illinois Auditor of Public Accounts, Springfield.

ERNEST E. EAST

Reynolds, a wealthy forwarding and commission mer-
chant, McClure, a lumber dealer, and McDougal, owner of a
business block, filed a bill in the United States Court praying
a perpetual injunction against Forsyth to restrain him from
prosecuting ejectment proceedings against occupants of the
French claim lot designated as No. 7 on the plat.29 Plaintiffs
set up that Thomas Forsyth was barred under the acts for the
relief of Peoria inhabitants because under a Federal act of
1823 he had received two land donations in Michigan Terri-
tory.30

Robert Forsyth’s answer set out the chain of title to the
lot. He stated that John Baptiste Maillet31 had occupied the
lot prior to 1790 when he sold it to John Coursoll who, in
turn, sold it to Thomas Forsyth. The original claimant, the
elder Forsyth, devised the property by will to Thomas, Mary,
and Robert Forsyth, his children.32 Robert Forsyth acquired the
interests of the other children.

The United States Circuit Court in 1852, gave the plain-

29 French claim lot No. 7 was conveyed by the United States to the legal representatives
of Thomas Forsyth “under John Baptiste Maillet . . . the inhabitant or settler within the pur-
view of the confirmatory act of Congress. ’ ’ The lot contained 102,936 square feet. It lay near
the foot of the present Harrison Street. Forsyth, the original claimant, presented the testi-
mony of Hipolite Maillet who said he was born in a stockaded fort which stood on this lot,
and that his father, John Baptiste Maillet, had been there as early as 1778. John M. Coursoll,
who acquired the lot, sold it to Forsyth (Duff Green edition, American State Papers , Public
Lands, III: 424).

Robert Forsyth in 1854 sold three parcels of lot No. 7 for an aggregate of $13,825.50.
He sold two other parcels for a nominal consideration. He sold a sixth parcel (with other
parcels) for approximately $4,400. Forsyth acquired and sold interests in twenty other French
claim lots although title to only eight of this number passed from the United States to the
claimants.

30 Green, Am. State Papers, P.L., I: 282.

31 Jean Baptiste Maillet probably was born at St. Denis, Richelieu County, Quebec, on
July 3, 1753- He was at Peoria in or before 1773. He received two land donations of 400
acres each under Congressional acts of 1788 and 1791, respectively. His estate received a dona-
tion of 100 acres on account his military service. Maillet was appointed commandant at
Peoria by George Rogers Clark. He was continued in this capacity by Arthur St. Clair, first
governor of the Northwest Territory. William H. Smith, The St. Clair Papers (Cincinnati,
1882), II: 137-38. Maillet appears, in 1773, to have sold land “near the Peoria Old Fort’’ to
Jean Baptiste Point Sable before the French-Negro moved to the Chicago area. Maillet on
July 6, 1801, sold 800 acres at Peoria to Isaac Darneille, the second lawyer to practice in Illi-
nois. The grantor simply signed “M.’’

32 Mary Forsyth was married to Anthony R. Bouis. Thomas, son of Thomas, died un-
married. Robert Forsyth was appointed administrator of the estate of Thomas Forsyth.
Thomas Forsyth’s will, executed at St. Louis on Sept. 11, 1833, bequeathed seven Negroes to
his descendants. Edward Bates (afterward Attorney General in Lincoln’s cabinet), and Robert
Allan Forsyth (Paymaster, U.S. Army, Detroit), were named executors.

LINCOLN AND THE PEORIA FRENCH CLAIMS

tiffs a perpetual injunction on the ground that grants to
Thomas Forsyth in Michigan Territory rendered invalid the
patent which was issued to the legal representatives of the
claimant.

Upon Forsyth’s appeal, the United States Supreme Court
reversed the lower court and remanded the case with direc-
tions to dismiss the bill, holding that lands granted to settlers
in Michigan Territory prior to the surrender of the western
posts by the British government were made to carry out pro-
visions of Jay’s Treaty and were not donations which would
exclude a settler in Peoria from the benefits of the acts of 1820
and 182 3. 33 Archibald Williams argued the case for the appel-
lant. Briefs on that side also were filed by Lincoln. Salmon P.
Chase of Ohio, Lincoln’s first Secretary of the Treasury, argued
for the appellees and a brief also was filed by Norman H.
Purple34 of Peoria.

Charles Ballance, in 1870, wrote The History of Peoria,
Illinois, and in this he reviewed the French claims controversy
with a show of considerable prejudice. He complained:

I have known honest jurors to find verdicts against evidence, and
honest judges to overrule the plainest principles of law that have been
established since the days of Lord Coke, to aid the speculators in these
controversies. I have known a certain speculator [Robert Forsyth] to
take a surveyor about block 34 (to which he had no more title than the
king of Dahomey), and look wise, and say nothing, while all the inhabi-

33 Forsyth, Appellant, v. Reynolds et al., 15 How. (U.S.) 358. Records, including briefs,
of twelve Peoria French claim cases which went to the United States Supreme Court are in the
Library of Congress but Forsyth v. Reynolds et al., is not among them. E. F. Cullinane, assistant
clerk of the Supreme Court, in response to an inquiry replied: “I have examined the papers
in the cases referred to and have been unable to locate any of the briefs which were supposed
to have been filed by Mr. Lincoln.” (The Supreme Court’s opinion in Ballance, Plaintiff in
Error, v. Forsyth et al, 13 How.. (U.S.) 18, states: ‘‘Charles Ballance was admitted to defend in
the place of Lincoln, that suit having been consolidated with the one brought by the plaintiffs
against Goudy.” Reference here is made not to Abraham Lincoln but to Albert F. Lincoln of
Peoria, who was defendant in a United States Circuit Court suit brought by Forsyth).

34 Norman H. Purple was born in Otsego County, N. Y., 1803; studied law in Pennsyl-
vania and was admitted to the bar in 1830; moved to Peoria in 1837; appointed justice of the
Illinois Supreme Court by Governor Ford and served from 1846 until the court was reorganized
under the Constitution of 1848. He was assigned to preside in the Fifth Judicial District. Re-
sumed law practice in Peoria; member of the State Constitutional Convention of 1862. Purple
compiled a volume of Illinois laws relating to real estate, and also compiled in two volumes
the general statutes of the state which became known as the ‘‘Purple Statutes.” Purple died
in Chicago, 1863- David McCulloch, The History of Peoria County, (Chicago, 1902), II: 538.

ERNEST E. EAST

j tants in the block were running out and begging him not to disposess
[them, promising submission, and agreeing to pay whatever they should.

The Peoria Daily Transcript of June 3, 1867, printed a
news article headed, "The End of the French Claims," in
; which it was stated that Mr. Ballance had settled pending
! suits by paying $31,000 to Forsyth. Ballance, in a communica-
i tion printed in the Transcript two days later, made no denial of
the statement except to say that the controversy was not finally
closed. Deeds, he admitted, were in preparation. He added:

I have expended many thousands of dollars in money and some of
khe best years of my life in opposing a band of speculators, who, but for
me, would have recovered a large portion of our city and stopped up our
spacious streets and opening in lieu of them running at different angles,
“French cowpaths.”

A warranty deed under which Robert Forsyth and Ann
M., his wife, conveyed eight parcels of real estate in Ballance’s
addition, and in Bigelow and Underhill’s addition, to Ballance
was recorded on June 11, 1867. The consideration was
$3 1,000. 35

One of Ballance’s biographers36 states that he fought the
French claims, frequently singlehanded against some of the
best lawyers in the West; that he was sometimes successful
and sometimes defeated, but that "he persisted until he
triumphed over all his opponents, and removed entirely and
forever that incubus on the prosperity of the city ... so that
now no such claims exist."

This is an overstatement. Ballance obtained from the
United States Supreme Court an opinion sustaining his con-

35 Record C C Peoria County Recorder, 89.

36 McCulloch, History of Peoria County , II: 444.

Earlier claims of French settlers, which bore no relation to the acts of 1820 and 1823,
were based on occupancy and improvement of lands at Peoria. Claims were affirmed or re-
jected by the commissioners of the Kaskaskia land district who reported to the Secretary of
the Treasury on Dec. 31, 1809- (See Gales and Seaton edition, American State Papers, Public
Lands, passim. ) Claims affirmed were confirmed by act of Feb. 20, 1812. ( United States Statutes
at Large, Vol. 2, 12 Cong., 1st Sess., Chap. 22.) A widely publicized claim was that of the
heirs of Philippe Frangois Renault, director general of mines of the Mississippi Company, who
in 1723 received large grants at Peoria Lake (Pimiteoui), Kaskaskia, and St. Philippe. These
were of doubtful validity. Renault heirs made numerous unsuccessful attempts to obtain con-
firmation of the concessions.

LINCOLN AND THE PEORIA FRENCH CLAIMS

tention that the Illinois statute of limitations barred recovery ;
after adverse possession for seven years. But while winning
three cases in the highest court he lost no fewer than five :
others. French claims no longer exist because Ballance and
others obtained release through purchase of the interests of
claimants who met the requirements of federal and state laws.

Mr. Ballance did not settle for cash when he had the
means to continue a fight.

— £? idcfeoidSEe

SALTILLO HUMOR

One of the principal ingredients of army camp newspapers has al-
ways been humor — even as long ago as the Mexican War. The following j
story about General Zachary Taylor is quoted from The Picket Guard (May
21, 1847), which was published for seven weeks in the spring of 1847 at ,
Saltillo, Mexico, by two Illinois soldiers, William and Moses Osman, i
Copies of six of the seven issues of their newspaper were recently given to :
the Illinois State Historical Library by William Osman, of Ottawa, Illi- j
nois, an heir of The Picket Guard's founders.

General Taylor’s Spanish — Noth-
ing, we have heard it said, annoys
Gen. Taylor more than to have
Mexicans come to him and address
him in Spanish. During the year
he has been in this country, he has
learned but one word of Spanish,
and that is vamos , — the imperative
plural of go, — begone. One day
while encamped at Saltillo, being
very busy in his tent, a Mexican
came up and commenced uttering a
long complaint in Spanish. The
old Gen. turned to Maj. Bliss and
asked ‘ ‘What in heaven’s name does
the man want?” Maj. B. explained
that the Mississippians appeared to
be taking wood from his house.
Now the Mississippi Regt. was a
favorite of the General’s and as
they had always conducted them-

selves well, he was in an unfortu-
nate mood to hear complaints
against them. So waving his hand
towards the Mexican, he told him
to ‘huebos, huebos, huebos'’ [eggs,
eggs, eggs] He had heard some one
use the word, a minute before, and
took it for his favorite word vamos.
When Gen. Taylor, in Jan. last,
arrived here from Monterey, he en-
camped near town but was not
pleased with the location for an en-
campment. So speaking on the sub-
ject with a number of officers that
had called to pay their respects to
him, he told them that in a few
days he should move the whole
army to agiia ardeante , (the Mexican
word for brandy, (He meant Agua
Nueva.

Distribution of

Illinois State Historical Society Membership

Legend,

Membership by Counties
per 10,000 Inhabitants
(Jan. 1, 1949)

| | No Members

E: : :;) Less thanTwo Member^
nrn^o ^ Four Members
Four to Six Members
Six to E i Wt Members
Ei^ht to Eleven Members

Thomas Jefferson would have liked this map because he believed that
the salvation of democracy depended on the rural areas. Note the influence
of downstate colleges on the counties in which they are located.

minis st

STORY OF ILLINOIS

(Revised Edition)

By Theodore Calvin Pease

THIS IS ILLINOIS

(A Pictorial History)

By Jay Monaghan

CAHOKIA

MAY 20 and 21

Spring Tour — 250fh Anniversary of Oldest
Settlement in the Mississippi Valley

jlSTORlUL SOCIETY

i lioaMG/wf,

SPRINGFIELD

OCTOBER 7 and 8

Annual Meeting and Celebration of
the Society’s Fiftieth Anniversary

Fifty Years of

Illinois State Historical Society Membership

This graph shows the ups and downs of the Illinois State Historical
Society’s membership during half a century. The financial depression of
the 1930’s, of course, brought the sharpest drop in membership and this
was the final phase of a general decline caused by raising the dues from
$1.00 to $2.00 and weeding out non-paying members. The great increase
after 1945 is due, in part, to the enrollment of junior members. The map
of the state showing the membership by counties does not include these
juniors. If it did, Rock Island County would have a larger proportion of !
membership than any of the other 101 counties. Also, Cook County is
one of the lowest in the proportional ratings despite the fact that it has
some 700 members — several times as many as any other county.

SILAS BRYAN OF SALEM

BY PAOLO E. COLETTA

A gaunt youth of fourteen, nearly six feet tall, with an
aquiline nose and thin lips, stood on the crest of a
Virginia mountain ridge. He gazed longingly toward the pleas-
ant valleys to the east below, where the beautiful mansions
blended their red bricks and white paint with the natural
colors of field and forest and stream. Some day, he said to
himself, he, too, would have a plantation, he, too, would be a
country squire with a mansion and a deer park. Then Silas
Lillard Bryan, determination registered on his countenance,
turned abruptly away and began a long journey westward to
the prairies of Illinois.

This was the second journey for Silas Bryan. When he
was six years old the family had moved from near Sperryville,
Virginia, to Point Pleasant, now in West Virginia, leaving the
home of the first Bryans in America.1 His grandfather, Wil-

1 The precise date of the arrival of the first Bryan from Ireland remains unknown, but
it was before the Revolutionary War. Wayne C. Williams, William Jennings Bryan (New York,
1936), 19-20, has traced one line of Bryans “back to Baron William De Mowbray, who helped
to wrest Magna Carta from King John,” and another to a King of Munster, born 927 A.D.,
known as Bryan Borou. About 1600 a direct lineal descendant of Bryan Borou, the unruly
William Smith Bryan, was shipped by the English throne to Gloucester Beach, Virginia. A
son, Francis, returned about 1650 to try to regain the hereditary title and estates, but he ran
afoul of the authorities, fled to Denmark and married there. A son, Morgan, came to America
in 1695, married a Dutch woman named Martha Strode, and in 1710 moved from Pennsyl-
vania to Virginia. It is believed that William Bryan of Sperryville is a descendant of this
Morgan Bryan.

Paolo E. Coletta is an instructor in the Department of English ,
History , and Government at the United States Naval Academy , An-
napolis, Maryland.

SILAS BRYAN OF SALEM

liam Bryan, owner of substantial farm and timber lands, had
been a God-fearing farmer and soldier;2 he had been so active
in the local Baptist church that it was often called the Bryan
Meeting House. Of his three sons, two succumbed to the lure
of the West. The second son, John, stayed at first on the home
place. He married Nancy Lillard, of English stock, and reared
a family of ten children. He died in 1834. Nancy followed him
two years later, and the orphaned Silas decided to go to live
with an older sister, Nancy A. Baltzell, in Marion County, in
the midst of "Egypt’ ’ in Illinois.

Upon reaching Marion County, Silas completed the ele-
mentary schooling begun in Virginia and, when eighteen,
went to live for a year with a brother, William, who farmed
near Troy, Missouri. While there he attended the local acad-
emy but, still fired with ambition for education, he entered
McKendree College, a Methodist institution at Lebanon, Illi-
nois. He took the classical course and was graduated in 1849.
Finding it difficult to make financial ends meet, he was forced
to drop out of college from time to time to earn money as a
farm hand and wood chopper. He and a friend economized by
keeping bachelor quarters in a shack. He soon acquired the
meager stock of learning required of a pedagogue and taught
school during the latter summers of his college years.

James H. Roberts, who was graduated a year before Silas,
remembered the spirit of individualism which animated him,
as revealed by the following incident:

Mr. Bryan was a hard student and stood in the front rank of scholar-
ship, but he was a confirmed tobacco chewer. The expectorations of the
young men indulging in this habit, especially in the college chapel, drew
down on them a sharp rebuke from one of the New England professors
who would not be reconciled to this bad Western habit. Bryan regarded
it as aimed at him particularly, as it was well known that he stood at the

2 For genealogical sketches of the early Bryans see W. A. Crozier, ed., Virginia County
Records (New York, 1895), I: 12, 18, 85, 129 ; Mary J. Seymour, Lineage Book. National Society
of the Daughters of the American Revolution (Washington, 1898), VII : 263; XII : 341 ; XIX : 1 ; XXI :
321. A proclamation issued by the governor of North Carolina on July 1, 1776, commissioned
William and Samuel Bryan to levy and muster troops to fight against the British.

PAOLO E. COLETTA

front, if he were not the very chief offender. The reprimand immediately
followed the morning prayer in the chapel service. Thereupon Bryan rose
in his place and in a few words vindicated the tobacco habit as almost
universal, and said he would not tamely submit to the public reprimand
nor the abuse of any man, and especially before the assembled faculty and
fellow students, without resenting it. His remarks created consternation
among the students, but instead of expulsion, as they had feared, they
brought immediate apology from the professor, who admitted that he
had spoken sharply, and perhaps without due consideration, and cer-
tainly with no intentions of hurting the feelings of Mr. Bryan.3

For two years after graduation Bryan taught in the
Walnut Hill School, a dozen miles from Salem, and for two
years was elected county superintendent of schools. While
engaged in these educational activities, however, he had been
studying law. Law and a public career appealed to him more
than pedagogy. He was twenty-seven when he was graduated
from college and twenty-nine when he was admitted to the bar
and began practice in Salem, a promising town on the St.
Louis- Vincennes stagecoach route, where two of his sisters
lived. The next year, on his thirtieth birthday, he married
Mariah Elizabeth Jennings, a former pupil at Walnut Hill,
and helped to hew the timbers to build their house. It still
stands at 408 South Broadway and is now maintained by the
city as a museum. At the same time, probably with the aid of
his new in-laws, he was elected to the State Senate.4

As a member of the Illinois Senate for eight years he saw
the crystallization of the issue which provoked the "irrepres-
sible” conflict, saw fellow Democrats torn between contending
groups striving for supremacy within the democracy and wit-
nessed the death of the Whig Party and the birth of the Re-
publican Party. He came into contact with Lyman Trumbull,
John M. Palmer, Stephen A. Douglas, John A. McClernand,
and Abraham Lincoln. In 1854, when Bryan was re-elected,

3 W. C. Walton, Centennial History of McKendree College (Lebanon, 111., 1928), 152. Col-
lege rates of tuition and living expenses averaged, in Bryan’s time, $80 to $100 a year.

4 This duty did not take too much of his time, for the Constitution of 1848 limited the
sessions to forty-two days.

SILAS BRYAN OF SALEM

Lincoln won a seat in the lower house but soon resigned to
run for Congress.

National attention from 1854 to I860 centered heavily
upon Illinois, especially during the Lincoln-Douglas Debates.
Douglas, with his momentous Kansas-Nebraska Act, drove a
wedge into his party which soon split it in half, weakening it
in the face of onslaughts of the new Republican Party. North-
ern Illinois, settled primarily by New England Yankees, ac-
cepted Republican infiltration; Egypt, home of the "unterri-
fied democracy," land of "Egyptian darkness" in which still
stalked some old-time Whigs, was disputed territory, but it
gave Buchanan sufficient Democratic returns in 1856 to over-
come the Republican majorities of the northern counties. In
that year Illinois elected a Republican governor and a Demo-
cratic legislature in which Silas Bryan again resumed his seat. !

In the presidential election of I860 Illinois was one of
three key states : the Republicans had to win Pennsylvania and
either Illinois or Indiana.5 6 Illinois placed herself in the Repub-
lican column for President, voted an entirely Republican ticket
into state offices, and destroyed the Democratic control of the I
legislature. Silas Bryan, having served for eight years in that
legislature, itself a house divided as the war approached,
failed to be re-elected.

The end of Silas Bryan’s legislative experience marked
the beginning of his judicial career, for he was elected to a six-|
year term in the Circuit Court. For $1,000 a year0 he had to

5 See Reinhard H. Luthin, The Democratic Split During Buchanan s Administration (Phila-I
delphia, 1942); Mildred C. Stoler, “The Democratic Element in the New Republican Party,
1856-1860,’’ Tapers in Illinois History and Transactions for the year 1942 (Springfield, 1944), 64;!
Philip G. Auchampaugh, “The Buchanan-Douglas Feud,’’ Journal of the Illinois State His- j
torical Society., Vol. XXV, nos. 1-2 (April-July, 1932), 5-48.

6 Adlai E. Stevenson, “The Constitutional Conventions and Constitutions of Illinois,”
Transactions of the Illinois State Historical Society for the year 1903 (Springfield, 1904), 25. Fred-
eric B. Crossley, Courts and Lawyers of Illinois (Chicago, 1916), I: 237, tells that the circuit
judges were allowed $1,000 a year “for suggestions relating to revisions and changes in thej
laws, which labor of course they did not perform; also . . . were allowed a fee of $1.00 for each
suit filed.’’ Bryan’s income at this period, from the law alone, was $2,000 annually.

PAOLO E. COLETTA

ride circuit over six counties, but, together with the returns
from his private practice, this income more than sufficed to
care for a growing family.

On March 19, I860, there had been born his most famous
son, the fourth of nine children.7 He wanted to name the baby
William after his brother in Missouri; the mother wanted to
call him Jennings after her father. They agreed to call him
William Jennings.

Silas Bryan’s seat on the bench, a safe place from which
to look out upon troubled political waters, did not deter him
from active participation in politics nor from making political
speeches, in a manner already characterized by a large admix-
ture of Christian morality, on the solution of current issues. On.
October 28, 1862, for example, he delivered at Salem a speech
entitled "An Address ... on the General Principles of the
Government, the President’s Emancipation Proclamation, and
the Settling of the Negroes in the State of Illinois.”8 In June,
1863, he was one of forty thousand Democrats who assembled
at Springfield to protest the continuation of the war.9

With the return of peace the state resumed contemplation
of those local issues which had been all but forgotten by sub-
mersion in the national crisis, and the Republicans began a
I crusade to gain ascendancy over the war-time Democratic state
I organization and to enact Republican "redestruction” policy,
I as Cyrus McCormick called it,10 into law. Illinois was the first
: state to ratify the Thirteenth Amendment; it was Trumbull
who introduced the Freedman’s Bureau and the Civil Rights
bills in Congress; Illinoisans founded and gave the Grand

7 Three children — Virginia, John, and Hiram — died in infancy. William Jennings was
| the fourth child and eldest living son. The other children were named Charles, Russell,
I Frances, Nancy, and Mary. The gravestones in the Bryan plot in the Salem cemetery show
I that Hiram was born Oct. 11, 1862, died July 19, 1863; John was born June 4, 1856, died
I (illegible); Virginia was born Sept. 8, 1853, died Dec. 26, 1857; Russell was born June 12,
I 1864, died Aug. 11, 1881; and Nancy L. was born Nov. 4, 1869, died Feb. 3, 1904. Visit by
I author to Salem, June 9, 1947.

8 St. Louis, George Knapp and Co., 1862.

9 Paxton Hibben, The Peerless Leader; William Jennings Bryan (New York, cl929), 27.

10 William T. Hutchinson, Cyrus Hall McCormick : Harvest , 1856-1884 (New York, 1935),

| II: 309.

SILAS BRYAN OF SALEM

Army of the Republic its first commander-in-chief, John M.
Palmer. In 1866, the Republicans swamped the Democrats,
and Illinois, the old stronghold of Democracy, became, for a
generation, a citadel of Republicanism. In the year that his
party lost its power, Bryan was re-elected to his judgeship, evi-
dence that Republican strength had not reached down to the
local and county elections in Egypt.

In the presidential election of 1868 the efforts of the
Democrats proved unavailing and the Republicans and Grant
swept the state. This time the the majorities from the northern
counties outnumbered the Democratic opposition from
Egypt.11 Marion County returns, however, gave Seymour a
majority. Except for the ratification of the Fifteenth Amend-
ment by the legislature chosen in 1868, the only other item of
particular interest to Silas Bryan was the formal issuance of
the call, signed by Governor John M. Palmer, for the consti-
tutional convention provided for by the recent elections. He
had been elected to represent the Ninth District. The conven-
tion was to convene on the second Monday of December, 1869.
Since there was little else of great importance in the off-year
elections, except perhaps the Negro suffrage matter, an at-
tempt was made to obtain an equal number of Democratic
and Republican delegates for the convention. This was done.12 j

A thorough revision of the constitution of 1848 was badly
needed. Silas Bryan recognized as its outstanding defect the !
authority it conferred upon the legislature to enact private
laws. As a result the short sessions were crowded with bills J
favoring individuals or localities, and this condition invited i
bribery and corruption, and furnished an additional impedi- j
ment to the working of the democratic system of government.13

11 See Charles Hubert Coleman, The Election of 1868; the Democratic Effort to Regain Control I
(New York, 1933).

12 Ernest L. Bogart and Charles M. Thompson, The Industrial State , 1870-1893 ( Centennial |
History of Illinois IV, Springfield, 1920), 4, list one independent, forty-four Democrats and j
forty-three Republicans in the convention.

13 The session of 1869, for example, required one slim volume of 480 pages to contain |
general laws and three large volumes of 2,800 pages to contain the private and special laws.

PAOLO E. COLETTA

The body of men which met in the old statehouse at Spring-
I field contained only eleven native Illinoisans : five, including
Joseph Medill of the Chicago Tribune, were naturalized for-
eign born; the great majority were from older states lying to
the south and east. Silas Bryan was one of the three men born
in Virginia. Fifty-six of the delegates were lawyers, thirteen
[were merchants, traders, and bankers, fourteen were farmers.14
An agreement was reached to refrain from drawing party
lines in the organization of the convention.

Silas Bryan played a creditable part in the proceedings.
He was appointed to four standing committees, among them
I the important Executive and Judicial Circuits committees.15
-Early in the convention, on January 10, 1870, he uttered a
"ringing protest” against a delegate’s declaration that since
i too much public money was being spent in printing the daily
[opening prayer in the convention journal, it should be
omitted.10 On January 27, he objected to the great expense the
\ state had incurred over the Illinois-Michigan Canal and sug-
J gested that the state be empowered to sell or lease it should it
i ever decide to do so.17 State subsidies for public improvements
1! did not fit in with Bryan’s tenets of individualism. On Febru-
ary 9, he made a speech which was printed under the title of
I "The Compensation of Public Officers Should be Regulated
I by Constitutional Provision.”18 The convention, however, left
this matter, as heretofore, to the discretion of the state legisla-
ture. Twice in February he presented communications refer-
ring to the establishment of public libraries. He introduced a
< resolution which declared that all offices — legislative, execu-
tive, and judicial — should be filled by popular elections.19
Also, he introduced a resolution to the effect that the new con-

14 Bogart and Thompson, Centennial History of Illinois , IV : 4; John Moses, Illinois , His-
j torical and Statistical (Chicago, 1895), II: 788.

lo Debates and Proceedings of the Constitutional Convention of the State of Illinois , Convened at
the City of Spring field, Tuesday , December 13, 1869 (Springfield, 1870), I: 75-

16 Ibid., 139.

17 Ibid. , 310-12.

n This seven-page pamphlet bears no date or place of publication.

19 Debates and Proceedings Const. Conv., 1869-70, I: 83-

SILAS BRYAN OF SALEM

stitution should be offered to the people, for their ratification,
one section at a time.20

Thus Silas Bryan proved himself a democrat in the literal
sense, espousing a philosophy which, stemming from Jeffer-
sonian days, had surrounded him in the Jacksonian period of
his youth and which he carried with him from the mountains
of Virginia to the prairies of Illinois.

Ill

As a man of strong character and integrity, graceful and
forcible as a speaker, Silas Bryan had been elected to help
make the laws under which his constituents must live, and
later to interpret these laws as they were questioned in his
neighbors’ quarrels. He also led his household in its spiritual
as well as in its temporal affairs. He was a member of the Bap-
tist church, to which his parents had belonged, followed the
dictates of the Bible in his personal affairs, and allowed them
to temper the severity of the worldly justice he dispensed as a
judge. As a youth he had gone to a party and caught a cold
which developed into pneumonia. His doctor advised him to
prepare, but without despair, for the future life, and the sick
student prayed as never before and promised to pray three
times a day if restored to health.21 In later life his devoutness
extended to the bench, where he would stop the proceedings
at noon in order to pray. He would seek heavenly guidance
prior to rendering an important decision, and in his home he
kept a family altar.

The Judge had a philosophical mind — broad and toler-
ant— but was somewhat argumentative. Some seventy-five
miles from Salem, in Fairfield, on the edge of Egypt, lived the
Borahs. The elder Borah, William N., father of William E.

20 Debates and Proceedings Const. Conv., 1869-70, I: 134-35-

21 This is the more common tale. Another version, found in J. H. G. Brinkerhoff, His-
tory of M.arion County, Illinois (Indianapolis, 1909), 413, is that “he promised the Lord if He t
would prosper him to get through college he would pray three times a day the rest of his life.

As told by Hibben, Peerless Leader, 17, Bryan is made to fall ill of the food he and his friend I
prepared in their bachelor shack.

PAOLO E. COLETTA

Borah, was a devout Christian, a careful student of the Bible,
and a leader in the Presbyterian church. Meeting as often as
possible under the prevailing conditions of travel, Borah and
Bryan would argue over the Scriptures. Whenever the elder
Borah entered the Bryan court the sittings would be adjourned
i for greetings. Once they started an argument at eight o’clock
in the morning, before the court met, edged off to a hotel and
| continued their debate until five in the afternoon. "We can
I only guess the nature of the compliments paid to them by the
[.lawyers and litigants who had business at court that day.”22

His decisions reached and blessed by prayer, the Judge
I could not believe them wrong. One day, just after the Supreme
| Court had reversed six of his rulings, he was accosted by a
Peoria lawyer: "I see, Judge, that the Supreme Court has re-
versed the Lord in six cases.” Without a moment’s hesitation
the Judge gave his unequivocal retort: "The Supreme Court,
sir, is wrong.”23 Rufus Cope (quoted in the Journal of Illinois
State Historical Society for January, 1913, page 501) wrote:

He was a trial lawyer of recognized ability, who was much addicted
to quoting the scriptures in his arguments to the jury, and was accus-
tomed to indulge in extravagant encomiums on the virtues of his own
clients. On one occasion, when a jury was deliberating on the penalty
they should pronounce against a defendant whom they had found guilty
of murder, and on whose virtues Bryan had dwelt at some length, one of
the jury remarked: “Well, if he’s as good a man as that old baldheaded
jlawyer says he is, the sooner we give him a hist to the next world, the
'better,” and they decided to give him a “hist.”

[Examples of the Judge’s zealous loyalty to his clients and of his
'.extremely moderate fees are numerous.

When he left the bench after twelve years of service,
Bryan delivered a farewell address to the grand jury which
sums up his philosophy of life:

I have not grown rich from the spoils of office. During the whole
term of twelve years I have received not more than a living. I have never-

22 Claudius O. Johnson, Borah of Idaho (New York, 1936), 4.

3 Hibben, Beerless header , 34-35: M. R. Werner, Bryan (New York, cl 929), 4.

SILAS BRYAN OF SALEM

theless succeeded reasonably well in the affairs of life and have of the
world’s goods a reasonable competency, but it has not come to me from
office. It has been the result of rigid economy, long and patient profes-
sional labor, and the sweat of the face in agricultural pursuits, aided and
supported by Heaven’s greatest bestowment — an affectionate, confiding
and prudential companion — and finally, gentlemen of the jury, I add that
the experience of public life has tended to confirm in me the convictions
of my early education — that the more we conform our lives and actions, j
both in private and public relations, to the demands of honor, truth, sin-
cerity, justice, and Christianity, the greater will be our happiness and j
prosperity, and the better we shall enjoy this present world, and the i
broader will be the foundation for the enjoyment of the world to come.24 j

IV ;

After his retirement from the bench Silas Bryan practiced
law in his own and adjoining counties, with occasional trips to I
St. Louis on legal matters, and earned a reputation as one of j
the best lawyers in southern Illinois. Associated with him in ;
his office were Michael Schaeffer, from 1857 to 1876, and a j
nephew, Charles E. Jennings, from 1878 until March, 1880. j
He continued to engage in politics and to contribute in various
ways to the advancement of his community. He proved an
exemplar of the man who found the execution of civic respon-
sibilities less onerous than pleasant. Local and visiting poli-
ticians were welcome in his home, where a spare bedroom was
reserved for both politicians and divines.

The bringing together of these two classes of community
leaders illustrated for the Judge’s children his contention that
service in either held, religion or government, was entirely
honorable. William Jennings Bryan saw this clearly. The j
Judge, he said, "shared Jefferson’s confidence in the capacity
of the people for self-government as well as in their right to
self-government. ... I have credited him with a definite influ-
ence in the shaping of my religious views; I am also indebted i
to him for the trend of my views on some fundamental ques-

24 William Jennings Bryan, The Memoirs of William Jennings Bryan, by Himself and His
Wife, Mary Baird Bryan (Philadelphia, cl925), 242.

PAOLO E. COLETTA

tions of government, and have seen no reason to depart from
the line he marked out.”25

To the Judge, too, may be traced some of the personal
habits inherited by his most famous son and the formation in
him of a nascent morality that hardened as the years went by.
Silas gave up the use of tobacco before William was born. He
abstained from using liquor. He hated gambling and taught
his children that gambling was wrong and that they, too,
should hate it. He led an exemplary family life and remained
eminently domestic despite his large part in public affairs. His
interest in education was inveterate: he gave financial as well
as moral support to various institutions of learning; his will
provided that all of his children should be encouraged to se-
cure the "highest education” that the generation afforded; he
made many speeches on educational topics. And, to a character
of sterling worth, he added the ability to get along with people
and to take the butt end of jokes with a saving sense of
humor.26

The roots of his wife’s family, like those of the Judge’s,
went back to the eighteenth century. There was a John Jen-
nings in America as early as 1659, but the first Jennings about
whom much information is available is an Israel Jennings,
born of English stock about 1784, probably in Maryland. He
married a girl named Mary Waters, and in 1819 moved from
Maysville, Kentucky, to a farm two miles west of Walnut
Hill, Illinois. The third of their eight children, Charles W.
Jennings, in December, 1826, married Maria Wood Davidson,
of Scotch descent. They had ten children, the fourth among

25 Bryan, M.emoirs , 25.

2S The story is told that the Judge and his brother Russell, who owned and operated the
public scales in Salem and maintained his business by the side of a railroad for thirty years and
never took a train ride, went one evening to a distant spot to address an audience in behalf
of the candidacy of a relative. Russell liked and drove fast horses; Silas got along with old,
slow Ben. When Silas arrived he found the audience dispersed and Russell, alone and dis-
gruntled, waiting for him. “Silas,” said Russell, “next trip you put your trust in the Lord
and I’ll put mine in the horse, and we’ll get there on time.” Interview with H. T. Sweney,
Salem, June 9, 1947.

SILAS BRYAN OF SALEM

them being Mariah Elizabeth. Israel Jennings was among the
first to purchase cheap government land in Marion County and
eventually became a large landowner and a political force. He
served several terms in the General Assembly, then meeting at
Vandalia.27

Mariah Elizabeth was born on a farm on May 24, 1834, i
and sat at the feet of pedagogue Bryan when she attended the
public school at Walnut Hill. She was tall, straight, upstand-
ing, with brown hair, gray eyes, a large nose, and high cheek
bones. She married Silas when she was eighteen. Not as well
educated as her husband, she nevertheless discharged her
maternal duties in such fashion that "she was as nearly a per-
fect wife and mother as one could be.”28

With the Judge away so much on the circuit, she was I
left to direct the household and to exercise full control over
the children. In addition to fulfilling these duties she some- j
how found time and energy to give her children the funda-
mentals of education and to devote herself both to church :
work and to various local societies for social improvement. :!
Accomplished enough to accompany herself on the piano as
she sang, she treated the children to songs of the day and par-
ticipated as a member of the household choir, which the Judge s
led in a capable and vigorous tenor. William Jennings remem-
bered his mother singing "When You and I Were Young,
Maggie” and "Farewell, Mother, You May Never Press Me
to Your Heart Again” to the children as they crowded about
the piano in the parlor of the farm home. William himself,;!
once wanted to take piano lessons, but the Judge checked this j
ambition with the suggestion that while the females of the
family might study music his sons would learn how to make
music on the handsaw.

Silas and Mariah maintained memberships in different

27 Early in his married life a daughter died and Israel had to hew a coffin for her out of
a tree trunk. To avoid repetition of the incident he bought himself a metal coffin in St. Louis
and kept it in the house for forty years.

28 Brvan, Memoirs, 29.

PAOLO E. COLETTA

churches for the first twenty years of their married life, but
religious harmony prevailed in the home. Each year they in-
vited to dinner all the ministers of Salem, regardless of denom-
ination, and to each sent a load of hay. Mariah’s abhorrence
of swearing made as deep an impression upon the children as
the Judge’s admonitions against gambling. William Jennings,
for example, would withdraw from his schoolfellows when
they began to swear. This aversion to swearing, admittedly a
barrier to gregarious intercourse, nevertheless continued
throughout his lifetime. William felt indebted equally to his
mother and father for good counsel and instruction.

During the Civil War two more children were born to the
Bryans and the house on Broadway became overcrowded. To
relieve the congestion, and to satisfy his desire to be a country
gentleman, the Judge moved the family to a 500-acre farm
about a mile northwest of town. Frequently, during the pro-
j cess of construction, Silas Bryan, like Silas Lapham, would
* drive the family out in his buggy to survey what progress was
being made on the homestead. On one of these visits little
Willy was allowed to help by carrying a brick, on a shingle as
a hod, to the bricklayers.

Originally the estate was a show place of Marion County.
' 'About the time of his election to the judgeship,” relates a
local history, "he [Silas Bryan] commenced improving a home
i on a farm near Salem, and succeeded in making it one of the
most tasteful homesteads in southern Illinois.”29 The house
I stood on a 120-acre plot approached from the public road by
| ; an avenue of cedars and maples a quarter of a mile long. The
immense yard which surrounded the ten-room house served as
■ the children’s playground. The farm buildings, made of wood,
1 were located to the northwest of the house, and a flower gar-
iden bloomed to the southwest. In a large, wooded pasture ad-

29 History of Marion and Clinton Counties, Illinois (Philadelphia, 1881), 196.

SILAS BRYAN OF SALEM

joining the house to the southeast the Judge kept a fourteen-
acre deer park. Three miles away lay an eighty-acre timber
tract ideal for hunting. It has been suggested that one of the
things Silas remembered from his childhood days in Virginia
was the sight of the plantations, with their beautiful mansions,
and that he had determined to have a plantation of his own
some day, to be a country squire, deer park and all. At the age
of forty-four he was able to satisfy that ambition.

The, house itself resembled a traditional Virginia planta-
tion mansion. The rooms were large and the ceilings high, j
Both the outside and inside walls were made of brick. The
inside walls, covered first with brown plaster, then with white,
were a foot thick. Each room contained a spacious fireplace |
constructed of special firebrick; wooden cupboards were built
into the kitchen quarters. The balustrade on the stairway lead- \
ing from the central hall to the sleeping rooms above was j
made of walnut, expertly fashioned and joined into a sturdy
object of beauty. The floors were made of pine boards six i
inches wide. Two outside porches, supported by wooden col- j
umns, led off the front rooms on both floors, and a piazza ran !
along the outside of the kitchen quarters, surrounding the j
long-handled pump. The furnishings included a piano, then |
beginning to replace the melodeon and parlor organ in better |
homes, and the ubiquitous trundle bed in the master bedroom, |'
hidden by day beneath the Judge’s canopied walnut bedstead. !0 \

Into this mansion moved the Judge, his wife, and their j
children — William, Russell, and Frances Maria. Later would j
come Charles Wayland (recently deceased governor of Ne-ji
braska), Nancy Lillard, and Mary Elizabeth. Because the j
Bryans thought the influence of the home more desirable than |

30 Both the house and grounds were in disrepair when visited by the author in the sum- j
mer of 1947. The exposed woodwork had rotted or fallen awav from supporting mortar.
Not a single whole pane of glass remained in the tall windows, not an entire outside door.
Large holes had been made in several of the outside walls and the plaster had fallen from
some of the inside walls. All the fireplaces had caved in. The wooden farm buildings were >
all but collapsed. Salemites said the house would be torn down and the estate used for a
modern housing development.

PAOLO E. COLETTA

that of the public schools, Mariah played the part of school-
mistress to her young children. Occasionally, when the chil-
dren were bad, they would be chastised and tied to a bed post.
"My parents,” said William Bryan, "believed in the old adage,
'spare the rod and spoil the child,’ and as they loved me too
well to risk my being spoiled, they punished me.”31 Years later
he commented that his parents were quite strict with him,
"and I sometimes considered the boys more fortunate who
were given more liberty.”32 "Judge Bryan was pretty strict,”
said William’s playmate, Judd Green, "I guess he brought up
his boys under closer rules than most of our fathers did.”33 The
Judge would see to it personally, on Sundays, that his sons
had memorized the catechisms which he brought them as
presents when he returned from holding court in distant
• districts.34

Judge Bryan farmed like a country gentleman. He culti-
vated only a few acres and rented out the rest of the land, so
that the family lived a suburban rather than a farm life, but it
meant farm chores to his sons — feeding the deer and helping
to care for the stock and chickens. The Judge liked to hunt,
with his sons as his usual companions. He gave his boys guns
as soon as they could use them and spent many winter evenings
with them at home molding bullets and cleaning guns. If the
boys went hunting alone, or with friends, and wanted to bor-
row the buggy, they would first have to carry a certain amount
of loose bark which had fallen from the wooden fence sur-
rounding the house and stack it in a neat pile; then the Judge
would bring out the buggy.35 To the farm for an evening’s en-
tertainment would come a group of boys and girls from town,
including the numerous children of the Judge’s brother, Rus-
sell. The Judge proved an ideal host: both the indoor and

31 Brvan, Memoirs, 40.

32 Ibid.

33 Hibben, Peerless Leader, 31.

34 Ibid.

35 Interview with H. T. Sweney, Salem, June 9, 1947.

SILAS BRYAN OF SALEM

outdoor games were fun, and the food was good and plentiful.

In addition to his growing family, Silas Bryan gave shel-
ter to a number of his relatives. An elderly saint to his chil-
dren was Jane Cheney, a sister who had moved from Virginia
to Gallipolis, Ohio, when Silas was a boy. Another sister,
Martha, had also gone to Gallipolis. When she died there
Silas adopted her orphaned daughter, Mollie, and let her
share with Mariah the lighter housework and the education of
the children. Until her death, Mariah’s mother lived in the
Bryan home in a room provided for her when the house was ;
built.

Precepts taught and examples set in the home appear
more responsible than either the school or church for the |
formation of the character and attitudes of the Bryan children.
Both parents set excellent personal examples, and they taught
the children to obey them and to fear God. At noon the ap-
proach of the Judge under the row of stately trees leading to
the house was a signal for William to come in from the fields j
for a reading and discussion period based upon the Bible. The
Judge would often read from Proverbs, a book he read and
re-read because of its wisdom on moral questions. The family
prayers conducted by the Judge became to William "one of the :
sweetest recollections of my boyhood/’ Late on Sunday after-
noons the family would gather about the piano and sing j
hymns, usually closing with the Judge’s choice, "Kind Words
Can Never Die.” The Judge also read poems to the children, j
most often his favorite, "Ode to a Waterfowl,” by Bryant.

VII

Violent religious emotionalism, although becoming rarer
than in earlier times, still continued in emasculated form in |
camp meetings and revivals. These were held almost every- i
where, in the larger cities as well as in the country districts,
from the closing weeks of winter until Easter. William Jen-
nings and his older sister, Fanny, made it a practice to attend

PAOLO E. COLETTA

these revival meetings and both, while at a Presbyterian
church, were converted and decided to become members. They
told their father about their decision. The Judge merely said,
"You children will have to form opinions of your own. I hope
they will be right.”36 Neither he nor Mariah objected to their
children’s affiliation with a church not their own, and it was
not until the Judge died that William learned his father had
been disappointed in not seeing him a member of the Baptist
church.37 Long before his conversion William had voiced an
ambition to be a Baptist preacher, but his joining the Presby-
terian church is in large part explained by his witnessing
an immersion when he went with his father to the Salem Bap-
tist Church. Upon reaching home he asked his father if it
would be necessary to be immersed in order to become a
Baptist preacher. Silas said yes. "Never afterward,” William
related, "would I say that I was going to be a Baptist
preacher.”38

These were years of bitter war between orthodoxy and
latitudinarianism.39 The crying need of the times, to many, was
some faith to bridge the gap between scientific discoveries and
old religious traditions. The sermon of "physical hells, actual
devils, bona fide infernos and all sorts of sulphurous horrors”
was being avoided by many ministers, but too wide a latitudi-
narian interpretation could still be charged with heresy.40
The Bryans, albeit tolerant in the outward shows of religion,
possessed deep and permanent convictions on Christian funda-
mentals, and to them as well as to his teachers their son Wil-
liam rendered thanks for the fundamentalist leanings which
formed so early in him.41

36 Hibben, Peerless Leader, 49.

37 Ibid.

38 William Jennings Bryan, “The Value of an Ideal,’’ The Speeches of William Jennings
Bryan (New York, 1909), II: 238.

39 See Arthur M. Schlesinger, “A Critical Period in American Religion, 1875-1890,’’
Massachusetts Historical Society Proceedings , LXIV : 523-48.

40 About the time Silas Bryan moved to the farm three preachers in Chicago alone stood
trial for heresy. Ernest Poole, Giants Gone : Men Who Made Chicago (New York, 1943), 39-40;
Bessie Louise Pierce, History of Chicago (New York, 1940), II: 366.

41 Bryan, Memoirs, 51.

SILAS BRYAN OF SALEM

VIII

When it came time for his son William to go to college
the Judge wanted to send him to William Jewell College, in
Liberty, Missouri, a Baptist institution he held in high esteem.
Various factors, however, caused a change of mind, and
William went instead to Illinois College, in Jacksonville. One
of the most important reasons for the selection of Illinois Col-
lege was the offer of Silas’ second cousin, Dr. Hiram K. Jones, ;
of a home for William during his stay in Jacksonville.

Hiram Jones was born in Culpeper County, Virginia, and ’
was a few years older than Silas. His family moved to Troy,
Missouri, where Silas’ brother farmed and he himself spent a :
year. After his graduation from Illinois College he went on to t
get an M.A. and an M.D. He lived in Jacksonville, practicing
medicine, from the early 1850’s until his death in 1900. At the >
College he first offered medical courses, but from 1885 to 1900 j
he taught philosophy. He was a great admirer, student, and
popularizer of Plato. Unknown to him, Judge Bryan paid
Mrs. Jones for William’s board for his six years at school, and !
it was in his home that the Judge died.

When William left Salem for Jacksonville in September, ;
1875, the Judge gave him a Greek lexicon and a Latin lexicon, i
two of the largest books in the library, and told him that he
would use the former for six years and the latter for five.
And so it happened, for the classical curriculum had changed
little since the Judge’s days at McKendree. He told William
that he could furnish only what money was actually needed,
that he could not afford fads, frills, or waste, and suggested
that an account of expenditures be kept and reports rendered
when he wrote home for money. To this William agreed. An
entry of "forty cents for [shoe] blacking, bay rum, etc.” in
William’s account book, followed by one of "to the church,
five cents,” elicited from the Judge the comment that his son
seemed to be traveling toward the Dead Sea pretty fast.

PAOLO E. COLETTA

Near the end of his first year at college, William, who
was growing rapidly, noticed that his trousers were too short
and wrote home for a new pair in which to appear more pre-
sentable at church sociables. His father answered that with
vacation time so close at hand it would be better to wait and
purchase them when he came home, adding, "you might as
well learn now that people will measure you by the length of
your head and not by the length of your breeches.”42

While William lived at home the Judge would take him
on trips to the courts in which he had business. Frequent visits
were made to Monroe County. Joseph W. Rickert, later dean
of lawyers at Waterloo, Illinois, remembered the pair at this
time. The son was as "modest and retiring as the father was
striking and picturesque.” "Enwrapped in an old-fashioned
mantle, an unusually high, well-worn stovepipe hat upon his
head, his feet encased in buffalo shoes, he [the Judge] greeted
the members of the bar, approached the bench, and kneeling
a moment in silent prayer, arose and directed the sheriff to
open court.”43 Rickert had been given his bar examination by
Judge Bryan in 1869- He had been told to appear at a certain
; tavern at eight o’clock one evening.

When he arrived, Bryan and two cronies were swapping yarns which
they continued to do for the next two hours, seeming to take no notice of
| the young man who nervously kept his silence in the back of the room.
Finally Bryan raised his eyes and looked at Rickert as if seeing him for
the first time. Running his hand over his bald head, he yawned: “Well,
Mr. Rickert, it’s been a long day and I’ve got a little headache. ... I know
1 you’ve got the knowledge. You just get your certificate of a good moral
I character, and I’ll send in your recommendation to the court.’’44

The passing seasons failed to dull the Judge’s wit. After
. two years at college and many summers on the farm, his son
William had developed physically into a man. He wanted to
be like his father, six feet tall, and to weigh one hundred and

42 Bryan, Memoirs, 55-

43 Ann Steinbrecher, “Joseph W. Rickert,’’ Jour. III. State Hist. Soc., Vol. XXIX. no. 4
(Jan. 1937), 361.

44 Ibid. , 361-62.

SILAS BRYAN OF SALEM

eighty pounds. In the summer of 1877 he was as tali as the
Judge; his father weighed one hundred and fifty-four pounds
and William one hundred and fifty. "I shall soon be as heavy
as you are,” said the son. "When you have four more pounds
of brains,” countered the father, "we will weigh the same.”43

Silas Bryan had given freely of his strength, time, intel-
lect, and money to advancing the cause of education, to the
making of laws and constitutions, and to the judging of his
neighbors’ quarrels. He had succeeded during his life time in
providing his children with the material necessities and, by
example and precept, in instilling in them what he believed to
be the correct attitudes they should possess in relation to
God and their fellow men. He left an estate capable of meeting
the cost of the "highest education” the generation afforded
for his children.

He had begun to suffer from diabetes and dyspepsia in
middle age. Indisposed during the early months of 1880, he
had gone to Dr. Jones’ at Jacksonville, where he could receive
medical treatment and visit with William at the same time.
He was all right on Sunday, March 28, but on Monday morn-
ing Dr. Jones found him unconscious in his bed as a result of
having suffered a paralytic stroke during the night. He was in
his fifty-eigth year. Mariah, hurriedly summoned, arrived
within a half-hour of her husband’s death, and on the next
day she and William accompanied the body to Salem.

Local newspaper accounts, bordered in black, said,
"Marion County’s Calamity. One of Her Noblest Citizens and
Greatest Benefactors Gone. A Death that Casts a Gloom over
All Southern Illinois.” At about ten o’clock on Tuesday eve-
ning, March 30, a large gathering of people reverently fol-
lowed the remains from the depot to the Bryan homestead. At
ten o’clock on Thursday morning, April 1, the body was

45 Bryan, Memoirs , 56.

PAOLO E. COLETTA

brought to the courthouse, where it lay in state until time for
the religious ceremonies. With the city council present, all
business houses closed and all the town’s church bells ringing,
the elegant casket was borne to the Cumberland Presbyterian
Church. Before his death the Judge had chosen the Psalm, text
for the sermon, and hymns which would comprise the funeral
rites. Soon thereafter the casket, bearing a silver plate in-
scribed "Our Father, Silas Lillard Bryan,” was lowered into
the Bryan plot in the cemetery.

Mariah Bryan outlived her husband by sixteen years.
After the Judge’s death she, with the oldest child twenty-two
and the youngest ten, carried on, with William’s advice and
counsel, until all her children were grown. After the breakup
of the estate she moved back into Salem to live in a house pur-
chased for her by William. Had she lived another month she
would have seen him nominated for the presidency.

AUTOGRAPHS— REAL AND FORGED

Signatures of Abraham Lincoln
are always salable. They are more
plentiful than many other auto-
graphs but the demand holds up
the price. Many people will give
$25 for a Lincoln signature and
brief notes fetch more. During
times of prosperity most auto-
graphs inflate in value like other
goods but Lincoln signatures have
proved an exception, at the present
time at least. In fact they are not
so high priced today as they were
ten or fifteen years ago. The de-
cline seems to be due to the supply.

During the depression many
workers combed old courthouse
and county records in central Illi-
nois. Lincoln signatures were clip-
ped, hoarded, and eventually sold.
This, in all probability, has caused
the surplus which holds down the
market, but a Lincoln signature is
still good property.

A few men have skillfully forged
Lincoln’s name. Some have tried

this deception for fun but most
forgers practice the deception for
gain. It is possible to forge Lin-
coln’s name so deftly that experts
may be fooled, but most forgeries
are easily detected. The color of
the ink used and the quality of the
paper help indicate a fraud.

Often the formation of the letters
in a counterfeit signature has a
spurious appearance. A forger is
apt to over-emphasize certain pe-
culiarities in Lincoln’s writing.
Occasionally a dishonest man
traces a genuine signature instead
of trying to imitate it. This is
easily done by placing a sheet of
paper over the genuine signature
and then holding the two sheets
before a light. The signature
shows through the translucent pa-
per and may be traced readily, but
such forgeries are very easily de-
tected. A magnification of the
tracing discloses the tediously
drawn and overwritten pen strokes.

Can You Detect the Lincoln Forgeries?

Write “true” or “false” beside your selections in this group of five
ignatures. If you have difficulty in separating the sheep from the goats
perhaps the enlargements on the next page will help you.

Through a Magnifying Glass

Do the enlargements change your opinions? Without turning back
label these signatures “true” or “false,” and if you are still uncertai
turn to page 108 for the answers.

Lincolniana

This cramped “copy look” may be
hidden by writing on worn paper
that absorbs the ink. Such so-
called “furry” signatures are al-
ways suspect.

As a rule forged letters are short.
The longer the letter the more
likely the forger is to give himself
away. It is always easier to imi-
tate a line of Lincoln’s writing than
a page of it. In long letters a forger
must imitate Lincoln’s style as well
as his handwriting, and most men
capable of doing this can make a
good living without forging.

The little volumes commonly
known as “Lincoln: Day by Day”
serve as another check on Lincoln
forgeries. This careful study, pub-
lished by the Abraham Lincoln As-
sociation, gives the itinerary of Lin-
coln’s life for many years. The date
and address on any new Lincoln let-
ter must correspond with Lincoln’s
known whereabouts or be subject
( to immediate suspicion. Moreover,
there are in the United States today
only about a dozen scholars suffi-
ciently learned in Lincoln lore to
be able to write a letter containing
. the intimate political details which
Lincoln would write at a given
time. An error in these details ex-
poses a fraudu’ent letter at once.

Some fifteen or twenty years ago
a number of forged Lincoln signa-
tures appeared on sheet music, old
maps, and rare books. They were
in the possession of an old man
'named William Brown who claim-

ed to have been Mrs. Lincoln’s
coachman. Careful investigation
failed to prove that Brown had ever
been a coachman for Mrs. Lincoln.
Experts also pronounced the signa-
tures false and pointed out that
Lincoln did not write his name on
books, map margins, and sheet
music. The old coachman seems to
have been a fence for the forger
whose name will not be disclosed
in these pages as he was never
legally convicted.

One of the shrewdest Lincoln
forgers went by the alias of Joseph
Cosey five or six years ago. He was
an itinerant printer from Iowa who
found a congenial environment in
the New York Bowery. Cosey
made it a point never to sell his
forgeries as Lincoln letters. In-
stead he took his goods to auto-
graph collectors and said, “I found
these in an old trunk. What’ll you
give me for them?”

Shrewd collectors, looking for a
bargain, spied what appeared to be
Lincoln’s writing and often pur-
chased the papers with alacrity.
Cosey was arrested a time or two
and taken into court with his
forged letters, trick pens, and nut-
gall ink, but there is no law against
writing Lincoln’s name and no one
could prove that Cosey ever took
money under the false pretense that
his handiwork was Lincoln’s. “I
impose only on greed,” he ad-
mitted blandly.

JAY MONTAGHAN

LETTERS HOME FROM ’49ers

The Argonauts who traveled overland to California a hundred years
ago are often thought of as grim and determined men. Their experience;
was epic but we are likely to forget that many — perhaps most — of the!
gold seekers were young men or boys. Extreme youthfulness is apparent)
in the following letters from Charles Wells, and William and Salmon B;
Lusk to Squire John C. Bagby, a lawyer in Rushville, Illinois. The firsij
letter takes the form of a dialogue from Charles and Will. Some changetj
have been made in punctuation so that the letters may be more intelligible
but the original spelling has been preserved — these Argonauts wrote “ac-
cording to nature.”

the many mistakes that you wil
no doubt find.

It is not my intention to corn,
mence at the begining of our jour
ney and give you a full detail of th
many hair bredth escapes and ad
ventures that we passed through 01
our way here; for that would tak
more time and room than I hav
got to spare. I shall therefore re
serve them until I get home an<
then while enjoying the comfort
which can only be found at home
I shall relate them to my Wife an
family.

Feather River Mines
California
December 10th 1849
My Dear Friend

Did you ever decipher hiero-
glyphics? If So, will you undertake
this; and while you are endeaver-
ing to bring the ideas into some
tangible form, remember, if you
please, that the writer is in Cali-
fornia, unaccustomed to the use of
the pen, and whare ideas flow so
slowly that before the second is out
the first is forgotton. Think of this
and pardon me while you pass over

HISTORICAL NOTES

Our trip was any thing but a
pleasant one : But there were times
vhen we enjoyed ourselvs as well
is could be expected for those who
vere living a bachelor life and far
emoved from all the pleasures to
>e derived from the society of the
air sex. We were led by our Cap-
ain through all cutoffs until we
nade our road almost as long again
is it need to have been; Yet we have
irrived safe at the promised land.
3ut one death occurred in our train.
Qiat was Squire Lane. He was sick
lmost from the time we left the
Vlissouri River. He died on Pitt
Platte] River. There was some
)ther sickness besides, generally
amp fever.

We came in to the valley on the
ourteenth of Oct. and in to the
jnines on the twentyeth. I shall
,i.ot tell you the amount of provi-
ion that we brought into the
aines. But you can judge for your
lelf. We started with provisions
;or six months and were seven
jaonths on the road.

We came through the City of the
jreat Salt Lake (as it is called by
?he Mormons) on the twenty-fifth
>f July. You are no doubt well
ware of the standing and char-
cter which the Mormons held
vhile in the States. They are still
she same. I had almost begun tell-
ng some of our adventures while
mere. But as I have promised Wm.
Lusk not to say anything about his
;etting lost in a cornfield while in
he company of a pretty and not
nding his way out until the next
\iorning I will not do it.

I wish that I could describe our
’lining opperations so that you
lould understand them. But that
> impossible. Unless you had been
j'i Gold mines before you could not
jnderstand me. While washing we

use a machine called a cradle. I am
getting to be very expert in rock-
ing it. So much so that if I ever
have need of a cradle at home I will
not have to learn again.

The Rushville boys are now scat-
tered all over California. But few
of them are in these mines. Mr.
Tolies is here. He and his boys
have done well. Simon Doyle in
[is] camped along side Mr. T. Price
is the same as ever. We have a good
deal of fun out of him. Half of the
time he has the blues and the bal-
lance he is love sick. Yet a better
hearted fellow never lived. Clay
Rodgers is still in the same mess
with me. Lusk and Weeden also.

Mullain came down last week
from the upper mines, he has had
a long spell of sickness. We accom-
panied him up into the mountains
for the purpose of discovering a
richer place to work than we have
hitherto had. On our way up we
found the snow above a foot deep.
We also had the pleasure of being
shot at by an Indian. The arrow
passed over our heads doing no
other injury than frightening us a
good deal.

One thing I must not forget to
tell you is that on leaving Rushville
I forget to pay you for my card of
withdrawel from Enterprise Divi-
sion. However, if you bear it in
mind when I return I will pay both
principle and interest. Among the
many regretts that I had on leaving
Rushville my withdrawel from the
Sons of Temperance was not the
least. I shall never forget the pleas-
ure with which I used to hail each
evening [which brought] us again
together, a band of brothers in the
same cause. Will you give them
my best wishes and bid them God
speed.

Do you remember that as we left

Historical Notes

town I requested you to take good
care of a certain person until my re-
turn. You recollect who that per-
son is. When you answer this tell
me everything about you and Cou-
sin Mary & . Wm Lusk re-

quested me to let him finish the
sheet so I shall have to quit. Direct
your answer to Sacrimento City,
and I will get it. I have not yet
heard from home. Give my love to
all the Ladies and remember me to
the boys and believe me

to be your sincere friend

Charles Wells

Dear John C. Bagby Esq
I requested a place for a few words
in this sheet, but as Charles forbids
me to look at what he has written
I conclude that he has told all and
more, too, and consequently I had
a half a notion to tell you of the
bear that Charles frightened to
death back in the Mts. He ran one
way and the bear the other. Charles
says that he thinks the bear had
the Roughest road and he very
nearly killed himself and he is
quite certain the bear did. But I
must close as the next page is not
ruled.

Give my love to all friends

William W. Lusk

Since letting Bill write the forego-
ing I have found that he has taken
advantage of my permition and hit
me rather hard to pay me for bring-
ing him into the cornfield scrape.
All that I can say in justification of
myself is that the Bear retreated

first leaving me in possession of the;!
field. I considered that I had al-':
ready won glory enough by run-
ning him, therefore did not follow!
for fear I should loose what I had
already obtained.

But to justify himself he can say
nothing. Had he not been out the
second night and a guard detailed;
for the purpose had to bring him in
to camp by force when he stated his
intention of staying at Salt Lake allli
winter I should not have thought!
so much of it. I shall say nothing;,
about Miss Hatch giving him thef
mitten on the road because he wasjf
an ox drivr nor about it making:
him sick

Yours

C. Wells L. P. F.

Dear sir: Charles, I find, has mad(; .1
a beautiful fist of it in paying me foj I
the bear story, as he is pleased t(G
term it. He had won glory (in ■>
horn) enough when, as he says, hj
did not follow the bear. You would
have thought so had you seen thj 1
kinks in his naturally curly hair all
nicely straightened out and standinl 1
Erect like Porcupine quills. Wei;
enough he concludes to say notb|
ing of the Cornfield and the esi
pedal guard or the mitten given bj
a young lady which, if she exists, i
have not had the pleasure of seein I
&c. as he knows better. But £■
Charles wishes me to say nothin
of the Mormon Spiritual wife b
took, and wanted to bring througl j
I will close. Yours

Wm Lusk

The second letter is from Wm. Lusk. Addressed for mailing to “M
Christian friend, John C. Bagby, Rushville, Schuyler County, Ill’s, ” tl
original letter paper was folded, sealed with wax, and sent, according 1
the custom of the day, without an envelope. John Bagby s father, a wel
to-do merchant and farmer, preached in the Rushville Christian Churc

Historical Notes

The family came from Kentucky where the elder Bagby had been impressed
by the teachings of Alexander Campbell. This accounts for the unusual
address. About the time of the receipt of this letter John Bagby was
planning to marry Mary Scripps, sister of John Locke Scripps, later famous
for his biography of Abraham Lincoln.

Upper Feather River
Sunday Feb. 17th. /50
Dear Friend

Having time and opportunity for
sending by private hand, I hasten
to lay before you such news as may
come first. And as I suppose that
you would like to know how we
all are and what we are doing. All
hands are we 1 so far as I am able
[to] learn. George Garrett has
made his pile and is bound for home
and is the bearer of this. Three of
the company are dead since we left
home (Including Lane) Mrs. Rook,
Tho’s McCown, Also Alex Mc-
Cormack. No others that I am
aware of. Manlove Taylors, Dick-
son’s, Doyles, and Weeden, Wells,
j & myself of our mess are all operat-
ing on the Middle fork of Feather
River. McHattons mess are on the
iSouth fork. Also, Tolies & sons.

| All are doing well. This is all the
news respecting the company,
i Three men were drowned at bid-
wells bar1 on yesterday the 16th
whilst attempting to cross the
■ river. (All Strangers). Many let-
herwriters from this country Repre-
sent the state of society here as be-
'ing much worse than it really Ex-
ists. They represent this country as
being overrun with murderers,
theives, assassins &c. And that
vices of the most abandoned char-
acter & crimes of the blackest dye
are daily occurrence [s] . But such is

not the case (Except [that] vermin
are killed by the quantity).

I have now given you the general
news. How we are. How we are
doing and what are our prospects.
I will now give you our destina-
tion. Many, if not more, are bound
for home as soon as possible to
make a raise of the needful. And
thence, as soon as possible to ob-
tain a passage, they expect to emi-
grate. Tired of a life in which there
is no female society or influence
they have determined to emigrate
to & settle in a state where they can
enjoy more of the Sweets and feel
more of the influence of female so-
ciety than in any other in the
union. A state whose laws are the
very essence of our federal compact,
whose boundaries though small is
capapable of containing and sus-
taining the greatest amount of pop-
ulation of any state in the union.
Tell the girls to look sharp the boys
are all bound for the state above
mentioned. Viz M a t r i m o n y.

As for Charley [Wells] he tells
me that he is going to take a squaw
out of spite because the girls are all
marrying old widowers. The hea’th
I had forgot to say was very good.
Give my best respects to all the
friends and accept

assurances of the

most profound Respect
And oblige Yours
Wm W. Lusk
FLT

1 John Bidwell was a prominent pioneer. He went to California in 1841 and was the
candidate for President on the Prohibition ticket in 1892.

Historical Notes

The third letter is from Salmon P. Lusk, who married a sister of
John C. Bagby’s and followed his own brother, Will, to California. Sal-
mon’s letter describes some of the uncertainties of plains travel. The
Mary referred to in the concluding sentence is Mary Scripps Bagby. Sal-
mon’s wife, Elizabeth, did not live long and he married again in Cali-
fornia. In 1876 he wrote to Bagby asking his onetime brother-in-law,
then a congressman, to get him an appointment in the Indian service.
John C. Bagby’s son, A. M. Bagby, became a cosmopolitan socialite,
dividing his time between New York and Europe. At the turn of the
nineteenth century his musicales in the Waldorf-Astoria attracted music
lovers throughout the world of fashion.

Middle pork

Feather River A ::9 [1850?]
Sir John C. Bagby:

You are one of the first that have
the trouble of lifting a Scratch from
me and from the way I write you
may know that it gratifies me to
think that I have had so pleasant a
trip.

We had no diffculy except our
horses got away four times. Twice
they were gone one day each time.
This was on platt River and sweet
water. The third time they took a
stampeed on big sandy2 [and] they
were gone five days. They took
fright at some indian dogs. They
crossed the desert on Sublets cut off
(this leaves Salt lake to the left)
toward the head of green Rive[r]
[and] went some hundred [about
forty-three] miles before they
reached water the next morning.
C. Dawson, a raw hoosier, and your
Servant started. Dawson had some
eight or nine [horses with the run-
aways] with thin. We had a horse
each and one blanke-t to rid[e] on,
and six crackers. We thought that
we would get them in one half day
and would not need any more. We
followed them forty-eight hours

[and] com[e] in weak as water.
Our horses almost famished for
water. Hired an indian [and] told
[him] where he would find the
trail. He started and was gone just
the same length of time and
brought them in, hitched up and
mad[e] them go fifty-three miles
that night.

Here on this post we found game
plenty and you had better believe I
had plenty of Antelope. This road
has many curiosites. But [best?] of
all [are] the Soda Springs, and also
the Steamboat Springs [in present-
day Idaho]. The soda is just as
good as it can be.3 These are on
bear river within two feet of thei
waters edge and seem to come
streight out of the ground. The
tube looks like a craw fish hole and
the [water] boils up and is of a red-
dish cast. And near this is a beauti-l
ful Indian village of the snakej
tribe. About fifty yds from this;
city is the Steamboat Springs. One|
is clear as crystal while the other is
as muddy as clay can make it. Thel
first comes out as large as your|i
thigh, jumps about two feet high,
rather warm, and the taste is like
Still Slop. It is on a bank about

2 Little and Big Sandy were the first streams crossed west of the Great Divide.

3 Overland travelers often put peppermint syrup in this soda water for their children.

Historical Notes

two feet high and within two feet
of the river.4 This [is] the way the
Spring line goes off — .

On we go, travel down humbolt
[River]. See Lanes Robertsons
rave, all in good order. See no
iggers.5 Cross the great Desert,
no trouble. Got in carson River
valley. Stayed a day, went on in to
the carson valley. This [is] one of
the most beautiful vallies I ever
saw, it has a gradual Slant from the
Montains to the river and evry half
mile there is a beautiful Spring, just
as cold as ice and as clear as it can
be. The grass is fine and timber
good. There is a few settlers in this
valley. Here we strike the Sirene-
vada Mts. . . . We got over this safe
and got in H[a]ngtown [Placerville,
California] on the twenty-seventh
of July.

John Lambert and lady are there,
keeping a house for a man for one
hundred and twenty five Dolars per
month. Henry is in Sacramento —
I see John Midy, Doc Shober —
John says if you were here you
would do well for they are hell to
law here. This town is in branch
vally, forty feet wide, and the
houses are shanties of the roughest
kind. The streets are about ten feet
wide and as crooked as a dogs hind
leg.

We then went to Sacramento.
This is a beautiful city, well laid
off and a good site. I see wood
[and] D. Brown, they are doing
well. I see a number of others that
I know. We then went up to Marys-
ville. This is a beautiful city and
improves fine and has some of the
finest Gaming sullons and Misses
Parlors, these are plenty.

We then moved up to Bills where
I found him busy as a bee. They
had just got to work at their claim.

Saturday they washed out two hun-
dred and fifty $. To day they
washed one forty. The Shares are
eight, and share holders are Simon
Doyle, Manvill Doyle, John nel-
son, and Bill, the rest are Strangers.
The other boys are above this on
Kinacka Bar. H. Taylor is three
miles from here on the north fork.
I see him. He looks bad. Clay R
is up on the same River twenty
miles above Taylors. Tell old witt
Newt is well. Charly went up to
Chasty [Shasta] mines about two
or three hundred miles above this
and the boys have not heard from
him since he went up. It has been
near a year.

Money is quite plenty and ten or
twenty is no money at all. We get
one meal [for] one Dollar. This is
in the mines, the city fare is fifty
cts, lod[g]ing fifty cents. This is the
contry for melons, they are worth
less than in the states. As for bar-
ley, this is the place for it. I see
fields that will yield one hundred
bushel-s and this was the third crop
without sowing. They plough and
harrow it in and let her go. It [is]
worth four cts in the city, ten to
fifteen in the mines.

I shall work a month for the
boys, until I get my hand in at one
hundred. I may be down on this
river some twenty-three miles, but,
if you write, write to bid wells Bar,
Butte Couty. Kiss Mary and fanny
and whip that negro for me, and
tell mary to give my love to your
ma and all Enquiring friends and
take a liberal Share for your Selves
Yours in truth

S B Lusk

write Soon and give the particu-
lars and write according to nature
and I will understand it

4 It is now submerged in a reservoir.

5 Digger Indians contributed to the Donner tragedy in 1846 by killing the party’s work

Cattle.

“PRETTIEST SITE” IN THE STATE

One day I lingered at Nauvoo, for I had long been curious to see this
old stronghold of the Mormons. Their elders are never weary of telling
the people that it is now a ruin, desolate as Tyre or Babylon. I found it
a beautiful town of some 3,000 people. It has the prettiest site in Illinois.
The river makes a bend westward nearly in the shape of a U; the point in
the lower part is a mile wide, and lies just high enough above the river
for commercial convenience; and thence the hill rises by gentle slopes for
two miles eastward.

At the upper end of the flat on the river is a splendid steam-boat
landing, and about half way around the bend the rapids begin, giving a
fine front for manufacturing purposes. Here the Mormons had projected
a row of cotton mills; they were to bring the cotton up the river, and with
their own operatives, converted from the workshops of England, build
up a great manufacturing community. Could they have maintained peace
with their neighbors, they would have had some fifteen years to perfect
this scheme before the railroad era superseded river transportation, and
Nauvoo would have had too great a start for the tide to turn. They and
their apologists of course maintain that the Gentiles were altogether to
blame for the breaking up of these fine schemes; but when a man moves
six or seven times, and quarrels with the neighbors every time, as they
did, I am inclined to conclude that he takes the worst neighbor along
with him every move.

After the Mormons came the Icarians, a curious but harmless set of
visionaries. It was the era when communistic experiments were in opera-
tion all over the country — the era immediately succeeding “Brook Farm,”

THE ILLINOIS SCRAPBOOK

Communia, and Robert Owen’s New Harmony Society. The Icarians,
under the lead of M. Cabet, wore a uniform, had all things in common,
and worked in detailed squads. But when one man, or an executive board,
has to choose what work every other man shall do, it soon appears a most
unnatural system as opposed to “natural selection.’’ Here was to be seen
a former college professor herding swine; there a Paris goldsmith driving
oxen, and a well-known scholar, crack-brained on socialistic theories,
was made assistant sawyer at the society’s mill. It cured him, however.

The Icarians failed, of course, and were in due time succeeded by a
colony of Bavarians and Westphalians, who have made a great success of
the wine manufacture. Where the great Mormon temple once stood is
now a fine vineyard, and not one of the original stones remains. Three of
the neighboring houses are built entirely of the beautiful white rock, and
the rest has made walls and foundations all over town. This wonderful
structure cost between a half and three-quarters of a million' dollars in
money and labor, and the Icarians had proposed to fit it up as a social
hall and school-room. But at 2 A.M. of November 10, 1848, [Oct. 9,
1848] it was found to be on fire, and before daylight every particle of
woodwork was destroyed. It was set on fire in the third story of the
steeple, one hundred and forty feet from the ground. The dry pine burned
like tinder; there was no mode of reaching the fire, and in twenty minutes
the whole wooden interior was a mass of flames. In two hours nothing
remained but hot walls, inclosing a bed of embers. At Montrose and Fort
Madison, Iowa, they could distinguish every house in Nauvoo, and the
light was seen forty miles around. . . .

The walls long stood in such perfect preservation that the citizens
determined again to refit it for an academy. But in November, 1850, [May
27, 1850] a fearful hurricane swept down the river, and threw down most
of the structure. From the deck of a Mississippi steamer Nauvoo, which
once had fourteen thousand inhabitants, now looks like a suburb of retired
country seats, stretching for two or three miles up a handsome slope; and
thousands yearly pass on the river admiring the rural beauty of the place,
but little thinking that a third of a century since it was the largest city in
Illinois, and the most notorious in America, the chosen stronghold of a
most peculiar faith and destined capital of a vast religious empire.

j. h. beadle, W e stern Wilds, and the Men Who

Redeem Them. . . (Cincinnati, cl879), 374-76.

THE ILLINOIS SCRAPBOOK

PRAIRIE SOD BY THE MILLIONS OF SPADESFUL

It was near Lanark that I first caught a real glimpse of the Prairie.
We have all laughed, or by this time ceased laughing, at the story of the
Irishman who brought a brick from the Pyramids, to show his friends
what the Pyramids were like. Yet I know not that the Prairie could be
described better, to those who have never seen it, than by bringing home
a spadeful of prairie-sod, and telling the spectators to multiply that sod
in their minds by any multiple of millions they choose to fix upon. In
truth, there is nothing to describe about the prairie except its vastness,
and that is indescribable.

I suppose most of us in our lifetime have dreamt a dream that we
were wandering on a vast boundless moor, seeking for something aim-
lessly, and that in this dreary search after we knew not what, we wan-
dered from slope to slope, and still the moor stretched before us, endless
and unbounded. Such a dream I, for my part, remember dreaming years
ago; and as I drove for a mile-long drive across the prairies of Northern
Illinois, it seemed to me that the dream had come true at last.

East, west, north, and south — on the right hand and on the left-
in front and behind, stretched the broken woodless upland. Underneath
the foot a springy turf, covered with scentless violets and wild prairie
roses; overhead a bright cloudless sky, whence the sun shot down beams
that would have scorched up the soil long ago but for the fresh soft prairie-
breeze blowing from across the Rocky Mountains; low grassy slopes on
every side, looking like waves of turf rising and falling gently. Not a
tree to be seen in the far distance; not a house in sight far or near; not a
drove of sheep or a herd of cattle; no sign of life except the dun-coloured
prairie chickens whirring through the heather as we drove along — notfr-
ing but the broken woodless upland.

So we passed on, coming from time to time upon some break in the
monotony of the vast dreamlike solitude. Sometimes it was a prairie
stream, running clear as crystal between its low sedgy banks, through
which our horses forded knee-deep, and then again the broken woodless
upland; sometimes it was a lone Irish shanty, knocked up roughly with
planks and logs, and wearing a look as though it had been built by ship-
wrecked settlers, stranded on the shore of the prairie sea. Farther on we
came upon a herd of half-wild horses, who, as we approached, dashed
away in a wild stampede; then upon a knot of trees, whose seeds had been
wafted from the distant forests, and taken root kindly on the rich prairie
soil; now upon an emigrant’s team, with the women and children under
the canvas awning, and the red-shirted and brigand-looking miners at its

THE ILLINOIS SCRAPBOOK

side, travelling across the prairie in search of the land of gold; and then
again the silent solitude and the broken woodless upland.

These scanty breaks, however, in the monotony of the scene, were
signs of the approach of civilization — warnings, as it were, that the days
of the Lanark Prairie are well-nigh numbered. The railroad in which my
companions were interested went right through the heart of the district.
To my English ideas, the line looked like the realization of the famous
railroad which went from nowhere in general to nowhere in particular.
But American experience has amply proved that a railroad in the Far
West creates its own constituency. In three or four years time the prairie
over which I travelled will be enclosed; the rich soil will be turned up,
and bring forth endless crops of wheat till, as a settler told me, the wide
expanse looks at harvest-time like a golden carpet; and large towns may
very likely be raised on the spot where the Irish shanties stood when I
passed. Every year the traveller in search of the prairie has to go further
and further west; but its extent is still so vast, that generations, perhaps
centuries, must pass away before it becomes a matter of tradition.

Settlers in the country tell one that it is necessary to live for some
time upon the prairie-land in order to feel its charm, and that, when its
charm is once felt, all other scenery grows tame. It may be so. I believe,
without understanding it, that there are people who grow to love the
sea, and feel a delight in seeing nothing but the wide expanse of the ocean
round them for days, and weeks, and months together: so, for some minds,
the endless sameness of the prairie may possess a strange attraction. For
my own part, the sense of boundless vastness hanging over the scene was
rather overpowering than impressive, and I plead guilty to a feeling of
relief when we got out of the open land into the tilled fields and green
woods, and cheerful villages which spread along the banks of the Missis-
sippi river.

edward dlcey, Six Months in the Fed-
eral States (London, 1863), II: 142-46.

A TEMPERAMENTAL STEAMBOAT

We reached Alton at 8 o’clock. The bell rang when we were within
100 yards of the shore, and the boat was in one of her spasms, which the
captain calculated would lay him alongside in gallant style. But alas!
spasmodic action is no more to be relied on in boat nature than human.

I On we came, the waters quite whitening in our wake, and making, as the
delighted Mrs. Raddle observed on another occasion, tlacterally more
noise” than if we had come in a better boat, for the engine creaked and

THE ILLINOIS SCRAPBOOK

hissed at every joint, and the escape-pipe disgorged itself about thrice a
minute with a dismal hollow sound, as if its vitals were breaking up. We
nearly touched the shore, the captain stood in his ruffles, silk-hose, pumps
and gloves, the passengers waited, valises and trunks in hand, ready to
jump ashore, and two or three were gathered at the waterside shaking
hands with their friends, and exchanging the usual ceremonies, when, oh,
most inglorious spectacle! the spasm ended, the boat rolled over on the
other side, threw the captain across a stool, and the passengers among
barrels, et cet., and lay motionless for several moments. . . .

The bell rang, the wheels revolved backward, and all the numerous
mysteries were duly performed again, but now the boat refused to ap-
proach the shore. She would come up obediently to within a few feet,
but the nicest calculation and the most delicate persuasion could take her
no nearer. At each failure she was obliged to turn quite round, and each
evolution took her half-way across the stream, and consumed nearly half
an hour. No petted child ever conducted herself in a more refractory man-
ner before company, than she before the astonished eyes of the goodly
citizens of Alton. Every prank deepened the tint of our captain’s hair,
whiskers, and face, and was made the occasion of as many jokes as could
be uttered till another followed.

“She shows off admirably, captain; nothing could be more fortu-

)

nate.’’

“If you could throw her into a fit just before she backs water, she’d
be sure to come up.’’

“If she refuses again, you may as well go on; may be she’ll come to
her temper at the next landing.’’

“The wood will be out soon, and then she’ll certainly float ashore
somewhere.’’ . . .

The poor captain became more and more perplexed every moment,
and actually went so far as to remove one of his gloves. The people on
shore cheered the last two evolutions, and the whole thing had reached
the climax of the ridiculous, when, by a fortunate guess on the part of
some one, the boat was at last brought alongside the shore, just one hour
and a half from the time of the first attempt.

eliza w. farnham, Life in
Prairie Land (1847), 26-28.

THE ILLINOIS SCRAPBOOK

THE 124th ILLINOIS INFANTRY IN DIXIE

October 9th, [1862] at 3 a.m., found us at Jackson, Tennessee, a
thoroughly “secesh” town, well laid out, and beautifully embowered,
though rather dingy, and showing the effects of war. We marched about
a mile east of the town, into a beautiful skirt of timber, and were told that
was to be our camp — our first home in “Dixie.”

We attracted a good deal of attention from our numbers, and were
frequently called “a young brigade,” by the soldiers we met, whose ranks
had been sadly depleted by their past service. So far we had all our men
in line. Not a detail had been made except by disease. But we soon
learned what assignments and details could do in reducing numbers.

Our location was lovely. The timber was the chestnut and the ma-
jestic southern poplar, or tulip tree — Siriodendron tulipifera. The foliage,
as yet untouched by frost, was heavy, entirely shutting out the sun. The
ground was very even, and broom sage for bedding abundant. We never
found a more delightful camp, in many respects, than this our first one. . . .

Toward the last of October, we began to hear of marching orders,
and on Sunday, the 26th, they came, and all was astir. Descriptive-rolls
were made out for our sick, and we were ready for a start, but we did not
move. Monday passed in waiting, and on Tuesday we were on battalion
drill again. The 29th marching orders were repeated, to move at daylight,
with ten days’ rations and 200 rounds of ammunition. In about an hour
they were countermanded, and the next day orders came to prepare winter
quarters, which we all relished, as we had just had quite a snow storm.
Really, if the enemy had sought to learn what we were going to do, all
we knew would not have helped them much.

But marching orders came for certain, the evening of the 1st of
November, and so anxious were we, or our officers, to be ready, that we
sat up all night to make sure. Some would have secured a little sleep, but
about 1 o’clock the order came from Colonel [Thomas J.] Sloan, who had
reached us a few days previous, to fill our canteens, as there was no water
on the road. Besides, our tents were all struck over night, lest there
should not be time to do it in the morning. How the recollection of such
verdancy amuses us now, after learning to sleep soundly in our tents till
the drums began to beat “fall in.”

We were in line at 4 o’clock, Sunday morning, November 2d, with
our knapsacks and cartridge-boxes on, and officers mounted. After a long
time, productive of uncanny speech and foolish actions, we marched to
the depot, where there was no stir, to wait again. Towards 8 o’clock the
other regiments began to put in a tardy appearance, as we thought,
though we noticed they were quite soon enough for the transportation.

THE ILLINOIS SCRAPBOOK

Finally we took possession of a number of “flats,” and were off for
Bolivar, which we reached about noon. Here we found ourselves, brigade
as we were, only a small part of what appeared to be a great army, and
the accumulation of war material was perfectly surprising. We biv-
ouacked about a mile from the depot, in a very pleasant spot by a stream,
with only the few trees and the heavens over us, and the broad earth for
our chamber and bed. The experience of the previous night proved a
soporific, and after a good wash and a draft upon our haversacks, most of
us surrendered unconditionally to sleep.

The next morning we were up at 2 o’clock, and all was bustle for
breakfast. This was not as bad as the night before, but was quite bad
enough, for our line was not formed till 10, and we did not move till some !
time after. While in line we received a mail, the last we expected to get j
for a long time, but in this we were agreeably mistaken.

At last we began to move, and soon found ourselves, for the first j
time, a part of an advancing army, with its officers and their staffs and jj
escorts, its artillery, cavalry, infantry, and trains stretched out indefi-
nitely. It was wonderful to us. Its order was chaotic. Its array was be- ?
wildering. But we were in our places, and that was all that was required \
of us just then. We started off with alacrity, being all perfectly fresh, and j
though the day was dry and hot, and we were so heavily loaded, kept it »j
up well. But our ignorance of marching told against us. We really had i
no conception of the weariness of the way. Other regiments, knowing ;
what was before them, carried lighter loads, and as we would move by
them in forming, or they by us, would notice our heavy overcoats strapped
on our plethoric knapsacks, and call out, “we will have your overcoats j
before night.” Our boys knew full well what this all meant before the
day was over, but the other regiments did not get our overcoats. We [>
made about eleven miles in the heat and dust, which was a good begin-
ning.

About 4 o’clock five or six calves were observed by the roadside, j
looking with apparent interest upon our moving column. They were j
some six months old, and in good condition, and many a soldier cast a i
wolfish eye upon them. But as the ranks were unbroken and moving, they j'
appeared to be perfectly safe. And so they were till Company F came j
along, for no one could stop to molest them, or dared to, with the eyes of i
so many subaltern aids upon them. But the boys of F just opened their
files, and hovering the unlucky calves into their marching ranks, covered
them with overcoats and blankets, and kept them along as though noth-
ing had happened. No one who saw it will ever forget the look of Fred
Statz, as he smiled benignly on those new recruits. The reason as we after-

THE ILLINOIS SCRAPBOOK

wards learned was, Statz was a butcher. On we moved till at last a skirt
of woods was reached, and all at once the line halted from some obstruc-
tion in front. Company F was seen to gradually deflect into the bushes
with unbroken files, till out of sight. In a moment a bawl was heard by
every ear, sure precursor of others, we thought, and of the presence of
angry aids and dire disaster. But Maj. [Rufus P.] Pattison being near,
comprehended the situation in an instant, and called out in stentorian
tones, “music, beat up there,” and immediately our drums and fifes were
played as if for dear life, and the other calves might have split their
throats with bawling without any danger of being heard. It is almost
superfluous to add that the musicians and the Major had veal for supper.

As this was our first march, so this was our first experience getting
into camp with an army. The long halts and short advances were an
enigma to us, like almost everything else. But we soon learned why,
though this night’s experience, like many others after, failed to prove it
pleasant; still there was but little cause for complaint, and ere the night
fully shut in, we found ourselves in a very comfortable camp, with plenty
of rails gathered, both for fuel and sleeping between, and our fires all
lighted. It was a sight never to be forgotten, those thousands of blazing
fires, springing up in lurid brightness, as if by magic, with the weird
forms flitting about among them, while the murmur of voices, and the
neighing of horses and braying of mules, added not a little to the wildness
of the scene. For myself, through the kindness of an officer from the 28th
Illinois, who had been in the service much longer than we, I had cove
oysters, sardines, and pine apple for supper, to eke out the stores of my
own haversack — not a very common bill of fare on such a march.

r. l. Howard. History of the 124th Regiment Illinois
Infantry Volunteers (Springfield, 1880), 23-24, 28-32.

Horns of Thunder , the Life and Times of James M. Goodhue. By Mary Wheel- j
house Berthel. (Minnesota Historical Society: St. Paul, 1948.
Pp. 276. $3.00.)

On April 28, 1849, James M. Goodhue published the first issue of the \
Minnesota Pioneer (now the St. Paul Pioneer Press'), the earliest newspaper j
to appear in Minnesota. Prior to his arrival in St. Paul some three days \
before the appearance of his paper, Goodhue had been a farmer in Illinois |
and possibly a short-time resident of Galena, a lawyer at Platteville, and ij
editor and publisher of the Grant County (Wisconsin) Herald at Lancaster. ;
A native of New Hampshire, Goodhue was graduated from Amherst in (
1833, but after a short period devoted to the study of law he wandered
west and spent possibly a dozen years in Illinois and Wisconsin. Here he I
achieved some local prominence through his activities as lawyer and
editor, but it was not until he established himself in St. Paul that his
name became widely known.

Few men have left so strong an impression upon a new territory in
so short a time. Goodhue died in August, 1832, barely three years after I
his arrival at St. Paul’s lower levee. In the interval he had become dis-
tinguished as a sincere and crusading journalist, as an editor who normally
supported the Democratic Party but whose devotion to the future good of
the territory transcended mere party allegiance, and as an indefatigable I
booster for his new home. As he wrote in April, 1852, “We advocated
Minnesota, morality and religion, from the beginning.’’ Among the
many causes which Goodhue supported in the editorial columns of his
Pioneer were better and faster mail service, railroads north and west of
St. Paul, local manufacturing of all kinds, the development of a lumber
industry sufficiently large to satisfy local demands, improvements in the
surfacing and lighting of streets, public education, temperance, and, above

BOOK REVIEWS

all, the extinguishing of Indian claims to the country west of the Missis-
sippi— the fabulous “Suland.” His rapturous descriptions of Minnesota
farmland, which he thought superior to the unhealthy fertility of the
American Bottom, competed with the superlatives of land-promotion
companies.

Goodhue’s goals were creditable, but his methods were certainly
curious. For James M. Goodhue lived in the heyday of personal journal-
ism. Gibes and epithets were his weekly stock in trade, and no language
was too scurrilous to hurl at a political antagonist or at the editors of his
rival newspapers, the Minnesotian and the Minnesota Chronicle and Register.
Goodhue prophesied (only too correctly!) that the territorial secretary
who “had stolen into the Territory, and stolen in the Territory, . . would
in the end, steal out of the Territory, with whatever plunder he could ab-
stract from it.’’ A certain supreme court justice, Goodhue declared, was
“lost to all sense of decency and self respect. Off the Bench he is a beast,
and on the Bench he is an ass, stuffed with arrogance, self conceit and
ridiculous affectation of dignity.” Probably the following diatribe
against two venal officeholders best illustrates Goodhue’s vitriolic
powers: “We never knew either of them, even to blunder into the truth,
or to appear disguised, except when accidently sober, or to do anything
right, unless through ignorance how to do anything wrong, nor to seek
companionship with gentlemen as long as they could receive the counte-
nance of rowdies.”

Mrs. Berthel, a graduate of the University of Illinois and a veteran
member of the staff of the Minnesota Historical Society, has produced an
interesting and valuable study of Goodhue. Six chapters of her book
sketch with utmost brevity Goodhue’s life; nine chapters reflect his
varied interests and reproduce many of his editorials. The exposition of
the political squabbles which constantly flared around Goodhue’s head
is tedious reading today but provides a necessary part of the background.
The most vital part of the book is that transcribing Goodhue’s own
words, for he had not only a command of invective but admirable descrip-
tive and expository abilities.

Mrs. Berthel’ s book is fully documented and is provided with a
fairly satisfactory index. The little sketches which occasionally decorate
the pages (the work of an untrained but surprisingly accurate St. Paul
druggist of the 1850’s) and the reproductions of paintings by Seth East-
man and Jean Baptist Wengler add greatly to the attractiveness of the
volume. If Goodhue does not merit a full-dress biography, these pages
succeed in making him very much alive.

University of Illinois. john t. flanagan.

100

BOOK REVIEWS

Biostratigraphic Studies of the Niagaran Inter-Reef Formations in Northeastern
Illinois. By Heinz A. Lowenstam. (Illinois State Museum:
Springfield, 1948. Pp. 146. Scientific Papers , Vol. IV.)

The written record of man constitutes the history of the human race.
The record found in the rocks of the earth, likewise, constitutes the his-
tory of the earth. The only difference is in the method of preservation.
Earth history is preserved in rocks in the form of fossils, trails, tracks, and
numerous other small markings. The broad picture of earth history is
well known, but it is only occasionally that we get a glimpse of such a j
detailed picture of ancient life as Dr. Lowenstam has given in his study j
of ancient reef and inter-reef formations in northeastern Illinois.

The Niagaran dolomite forms the surface rock in most of Cook :
County and extends along the west side of Lake Michigan and east as far >
as New York where Niagara Palls is formed on the same group. This
dolomite contains numerous reefs, composed in part of corals, and repre- j
sents an area of warm water deposition in the Silurian Period. Lowenstam
has examined in detail the fossils and physical characteristics of the Ni- j
agaran dolomite with the purpose of determining the precise conditions {
of environment under which the reefs were formed. He has studied the t
trails made by trilobites and other animals, as well as the form and posi- j
tion of fossil sponges, crinoids, and bivalve shelled animals. He pays as |
much attention to fragments as he does to whole specimens, because in j'
these fragments may be found the answer to the conditions of deposition. j:
Pragments may indicate the existence of shallow, rough-water conditions, j
whereas the preservation of minute, fragile fossils reflects a still-water j|,
inter-reef habitat. Lowenstam points out that the reef animals were, as |
a rule, large and robust with heavy shells and the corals were compact, t
flat-lying forms like the honey-combed corals.

The author seems to be as familiar with the animal life of these an-
cient reefs as though he were writing about present-day reefs in the Pacific I
area. He brings us a great amount of detailed information in the 146 pages '
of this book. In doing so he also lays to rest the old argument as to the ex- L
istence of “northern” and “southern” faunal provinces which has been I
subscribed to for an explanation of differences found in the fossils of the Ij
Niagaran. He shows that these differences are due to reef and inter-reef I
conditions of deposition, in other words ecologic differences.

The book is illustrated with seven plates, most of the figures are
clear, but some are poorly lighted. The reader may find some repetition .
of ideas, and the sentence structure occasionally becomes involved, but j
the report as a whole gives a good picture of Niagaran life.

University of Illinois. harold w. scott.

BOOK REVIEWS

101

Education and Reform at New Harmony: Correspondence of William Maclure and
Marie Duclos Fretageot, 1820-1833. Edited by Arthur E. Bestor,
Jr. (Indiana Historical Society, Publications , Vol. 15, no. 3,
Indianapolis, 1948. Pp. 285-418.)

William Maclure, through his participation in the New Harmony
community, made a lasting contribution to scientific research and publica-
tion in the West. Maclure was born in Scotland in 1763 and moved to
Philadelphia before the end of the eighteenth century. After acquiring a
substantial fortune, he retired before the age of forty to devote himself to
science and education. Influenced by Pestalozzi, Maclure brought Joseph
Neef, one of Pestalozzi’ s co-workers, to America in 1806 to establish a
school and to prepare a pedagogical treatise which was published in 1808
at Philadelphia. After a decade of geological studies and expeditions in
America, Maclure became interested in two Pestalozzian teachers, Marie
Duclos Fretageot and Guillaume Sylvan Casimir Phiquepal d’Arusmont,
and financed their emigration to America in 1821 and 1824 respectively.

Although only moderately interested in the social experiment of
Robert Owen, Maclure was persuaded by his Philadelphia friends to join
Owen in January, 1826. New Harmony, as interpreted by Mr. Bestor, was
not merely “an experimental application of novel social and economic
theories” but was rather “a highly complex movement, representing the
convergence of at least three distinct currents of thought, social, educa-
tional, and scientific.” The letters of Maclure and Madame Fretageot
over a period of nearly fifteen years “constitute the only continuous con-
temporary record of the genesis, culmination, and dissolution of Owen’s
social experiment and of the steadier advance of the scientific and educa-
tional programs connected with it.”

Mr. Bestor has selected fifty-two letters of the three hundred and
fifty complete and sixty-five fragmentary letters of the Maclure-Fretageot
correspondence, upon which he bases Education and Reform at New Har-
mony. Happily for the reader, the editor has woven a lucid explanatory
narrative about the correspondence. Written with careful scholarship,
this work makes a valuable addition to our knowledge of the social, edu-
cational, and scientific movements brought to a fruition at New Harmony
in the 1820’s.

University of Wisconsin. donald j. berthrong.

The Journals and Indian Paintings of George Winter: 1837 -18^9 . (Indiana His-
torical Society: Indianapolis, 1948. Pp. 208. $12.50.)

Occasionally a book comes from the press which is a real work of
art — accurate, historical, and fine in format as Dresden china. Such is

102

BOOK REVIEWS

The Journals and Indian Paintings of George Winter. The introduction is
written by Howard Peckham, author of Pontiac. Few authentic pictures
of early-day Indians are known, Mr. Peckham tells us. The popular con-
ception of the red man is a feathered warrior on horseback — in short, a
Plains Indian. The aborigines of the forested areas along the Atlantic and
in the Midlands were very different people. As early as 1588 a few Indian
drawings by John White, a member of the Roanoke colony, appeared in
print. French graphic interpretations by Jacques Le Moyne were printed !
in 1591. The Indians pictured by these artists were Atlantic Coast natives,
and their popularity is attested by the fact that the drawings were copied
and recopied for two hundred years. More artists drew pictures of the
early Indians of the Midlands — but not many more — and here lies the
great contribution and charm of this book.

Six painters have left us their interpretations of the Indian prior to
1840 — Thomas L. McKenney, Basil Hall, J. O. Lewis, Charles Bodmer,
George Catlin, and George Winter — but most of the Indians depicted
were plainsmen. George Winter, between 1837 and 1839, specialized in
Miamis and Potawatomis in the state of Indiana. The illustrations in this
volume show these Indians in camp and in council, lounging in a village
and conducting burial services. A series of portraits in color reproduces
accurately the delicate touch of the artist.

The book contains an appraisal of George Winter by Wilbur D. Peat,
a biographical sketch by Gayle Thornbrough, and the artist’s own journal
for 1837 and 1839- People who appreciate fine printing and those who are
interested in the Indian of the Midlands a hundred years ago will delight
in the pages of this handsome volume.

j. M.

The Territory of Louisiana- Missouri, 1803-1806. Compiled and edited by
Clarence Edwin Carter. (Government Printing Office: Wash-1
ington, 1948. Pp. 641. $3.50.)

The Territory of Illinois, 1809-1814. Compiled and edited by Clarence Edwin
Carter. (Government Printing Office: Washington, 1948. Pp.
506. $3.75.)

These are volumes XIII and XVI of The Territorial Papers of the United •
States, a series edited at national expense by a competent scholar. Each I
volume contains reprintings of hundreds of manuscripts. Proper annota-
tions describe them and tell where the originals may be found. The editoi
explains the purpose of each document and identifies the people men-
tioned. An interesting letter from the Secretary of War tells Captain Bis

BOOK REVIEWS

103

sell when and how to take possession of New Madrid and Little Prairie
j shortly after the Louisiana Purchase in 1803. The compiler enlarges on
' this territorial transfer by referring to several more pertinent documents
published in Louis Houck’s A History of Missouri. Among them is a letter
from French Colonial Minister Laussat to DeHault de Lassus, Lieutenant
:■ Governor of the government of Illinois at St. Louis, ordering the lands
transferred to the United States. The original of this interesting and im-
portant document happens to be in the Illinois State Historical Library
where visitors may see it upon request.

These volumes are primarily source material for scholars but the lay
reader who thumbs through them will find in Vol. XIII interesting com-
. munications framed by participants in the tremendous task of organizing
the Louisiana purchase into a territorial government. Volume XVI deals
I with a subject closer to Illinoisans. Among many items of interest in the
| territorial days of our own state, documents disclose a plan to fix prices
as early as 1809.

Extensive indexes in these volumes will furnish genealogists with
a new source for the elusive names of ancestors.

j. M.

As Luck Would Have It: Chance and Coincidence in the Civil War. By Otto
Eisenschiml and E. B. Long. (The Bobbs-Merrill Company:
Indianapolis, 1948. Pp. 285- $3.00.)

In what they call a holiday for historians the authors have selected
fifteen Civil War episodes and have shown how they were influenced by
minor events that happened or didn’t happen. It is a sort of if-the-dog-

hadn t-stopped - to-pick-up- the-bone -he- would -have -caught- the-rabbit
; game.

“If a Confederate sharpshooter,” say the authors, ‘‘had pulled the
tus musket a few seconds sooner than he did, Ulysses S. Grant
would not have become President of the United States.” This was after
the Battle of Belmont in the fall of 1861. General Grant had just gotten
up from the captain s couch on a Mississippi River transport when a bullet
plowed through where he had been lying. Undoubtedly the General had
J other close calls but this is the one the authors chose.

And farther on they say, ‘‘If a Confederate officer had not been a
; lucky fisherman, the name of Appomattox Court House would not have
j become synonymous with Lee’s surrender and the end of the Civil War.”
j The officer was Major General T. L. Rosser and he caught so many shad
jone peaceful afternoon that there were enough left the next day for him

104

BOOK REVIEWS

to invite General George Pickett and Fitzhugh Lee to his headquarters for
a feast. And the latter were separated from their troops during the Battle
of Five Oaks. This was the first of a “chain of events which led to dis-
aster after disaster” and to Appomattox. The authors don’t say that the
Confederate surrender would not have come approximately where and
when it did anyway, but they do say that the shad bake made a difference.

One chapter is pure fantasy — preceded by these words: “If Edwin
M. Stanton, Lincoln’s Secretary of War, had not pigeonholed a letter sent
to him in April, 1862, but had brought it to the attention of the Cabinet,
it might have resulted in sweeping consequences, such as these ...” That
letter suggested the use of chlorine gas and author Eisenschiml, who is ;
also a chemist, tells of an imaginary Union offensive that leads quickly s
to Confederate capitulation. Incidentally, another chemist, Lammot du i
Pont, supplies the action for one of the chapters in the book.

The authors have concocted an interesting historical side show, i
filled with big and little freaks. What they present does not have much
to do with the goings on under history’s “big top” and they don’t pre-
tend that it does. But, at least, their show is on the same lot.

Mr. Clutch: The Story of George William Borg. By Robert J. Casey. (Thei
Bobbs-Merrill Company: Indianapolis, 1948. Pp. 258. $3.50.);

More than twenty books in half a dozen different fields have proved
it is impossible for Bob Casey to write unentertainingly. Despite this the
average reader will approach Mr. Clutch with a slight feeling of hesi-
tation because the life stories of successful businessmen seldom inspire!
more than a routine job of writing. However, few other writers have}
subjects as interesting as George William Borg and fewer still have the
Casey touch. These two differences are enough to lift this book far aboveil
the average for the genre.

Borg is an Illinois boy who made good in a really big way. Al-
though born in West Burlington, Iowa (October 24, 1887), he spent hi:
Tom Sawyerish boyhood in Moline, Illinois. In 1902 he began a fouri
year apprenticeship in the machine shop of Deere & Mansur at six cent:}
an hour for a sixty-hour week. But he left before the term was up to joii
his father’s firm of Borg & Beck, manufacturers of woodworking ma|
chinery.

In addition to grammar school young Georgie Borg’s formal educ;
tion consisted of nine months in business college. And this, plus the hell
of Marshall Beck, was all that he needed. The role of Beck was parti(

BOOK REVIEWS

105

ularly important because this businessman-of-the-old-school was at once
an adviser and a horrible example to Borg. His fatherly aid was offset
by the fact that he wrote sales letters for the company in longhand and
made each a scholarly thesis. Borg listened to the advice and took over
the letter writing himself. And then, in 1909, the two of them invented
the modern automobile clutch.

Casey details the difficulty Borg had in selling his invention to the
automobile manufacturers, although it was the one product that would
do the job satisfactorily. He did sell it, however, and by 1918 the busi-
ness had outgrown Moline so he moved the main works to Chicago. From
this point Casey’s story becomes less and less detailed. The merger with
the Warner Gear Company to form Borg-Warner Corporation is sketchily
told and after that Borg buys up other companies sometimes at a rate of
six to a paragraph. He became something of an enigma to the financial
writers because his enterprises were able to weather the depression and
setbacks such as new inventions that would make one of his products
obsolete, and even several stabs-in-the-back by trusted employees. This
he accomplished by adhering to a policy of solvency and diversification,
from clutches he branched out into other automotive parts and then into
other fields — clocks, radio, refrigeration, television — until he owned, out-
right or in part, several hundred companies.

His latest “diversification” is the development of a section of Ari-
zona desert into productive farm land. The “Borg luck” held and his
wells produced plenty of water where water had never been seen before.
Incidentally, this last part of the story is told in some detail since the
author stayed at Borg’s fabulous desert inn, Casa Blanca, while compiling
material for his book.

All in all Casey gives the reader his usual fast-moving and entertain-
ing story. If the years between 1920 and 1947 seem compressed into too
little space it must be remembered that he is not writing history.

H. F. R.

Joseph Benson Foraker: An Uncompromising Republican. By Everett Walters.

(The Ohio History Press: Columbus, 1948. Pp. 315- $3-50.)

The subject of this biography and the detailed story of his public life
are most revealing at this time. They emphasize dramatically the change
that our nation has undergone since the turn of the century.

An “uncompromising Republican,” an ultraconservative Senator
from Ohio (1897-1909), Foraker today, if there could be any of his kind,
would certainly be in private life. He could never get elected to public
office.

106

BOOK REVIEWS

Even though a conservative of the most conservative kind he had a
penchant for the dramatic and sensational, and a flair for oratory. This
distinguished and aristocratic legislator acquired such nicknames as “Fire j
alarm Joe” and “Bloody shirt Foraker.’’ He could be vindictive, too, and j
seemed dearly to love a brawl. “He was regarded as a better fighter than [
President [Theodore] Roosevelt who had been known to yield. Foraker,
it was pointed out, never had.”

Born in 1846, Foraker served through the Civil War and went to col-
lege after his release from the Army. He was in the first graduating class j
at Cornell University. Admitted to the bar in 1869, he practiced law in
Cincinnati. “During his first year in law he earned six hundred dollars; ;
during his fourth year he earned twenty-seven hundred — ‘after that it was
easy.’ ” He was Governor of Ohio, 1885-1889, and U. S. Senator from ,
Ohio, 1897-1909. The presidency was his great ambition, but one can ;
easily understand why he never got it.

His opposition to Theodore Roosevelt is dwelt upon in great detail, ;!
as indeed it must be to explain his public life. In the “Brownsville Affair’ ’ '
Foraker really let himself go in bitter, personal vindictiveness. He had a i
later counterpart in Henry Cabot Lodge who so violently opposed Wood-
row Wilson, though Foraker’s actions hurt no one but himself.

A wealthy corporation lawyer, Joseph Benson Foraker came ab- |
ruptly to the end of his public life as his second term in the Senate neared i
completion. William Randolph Hearst printed, in 1908, letters written
to Foraker by John D. Archbold, vice-president of the Standard Oil Com-
pany. They implied that Foraker was paid to serve the interests of Stand- !
ard Oil in the Senate. No conclusions as to Foraker’s guilt or innocence ;
were ever reached, but he admitted being in the employ of Standard Oil. ;
The money he received was for services to the company in Ohio, so he said. \
And it probably was. He was not a man to be bribed. But can one serve j
two masters at the same time— the Standard Oil Company and the people f
of the United States? That, the reader will have to judge for himself.

Dr. Walters has attempted to depict this partisan conservative im- !
partially. That he has succeeded in this may be judged by the fact that j
the reader alternately admires and hates but must always respect this (
“uncompromising Republican.’’

s. a. w. ;

Ballads From the Bluffs. By Elihu Nicholas Hall. (Judge Hall Book Co. :
Elizabethtown, 111., 1948. Pp. 272.)

These Ballads From the Bluffs are adventure stories, romances, and
folklore dealing principally with characters in the Ozark bluff country of

BOOK REVIEWS

107

southern Illinois. Judge Hall, who is Hardin County chairman of the
membership committee of the Illinois State Historical Society, was born
in the region about which he writes and, when a boy, was fascinated by
the stories the old settlers used to tell. These ballads are the pioneers’ ac-
counts of the lusty early days in southern Illinois.

In this area of Cave-in-Rock, lawlessness was almost the order of the
day. Many of these poems deal with the violent and bloody deeds of
counterfeiters, horse thieves, and moonshiners, notable among whom were
John A. Murrell, Jim Ford, Squire Potts, and John Duff. These men were
known in that section as the “Big Four.’’

Against this background of lawlessness the forces of law and order
stand out in sharp contrast. Heroine of the ballads is Anna Pierce, Doctor
Anna, the praying doctor and nurse and benefactor of the whole region
whose diary the author read in his boyhood.

Doctor Anna treated th’ sick folks,

In the Woodland huts and hovels,

Where her tact, her patience, an’ judgment,

Her low tender voice and prayer,

Sympathy for the sick and ailing,

Remedies, herbs, her teas and cordials,

Won the friendship of the lawless;

Wives and mothers felt her presence,

Brought in haloes o’ peace and sanctity,

Driving out foul speech and profanity.

Judge Hall states that he first wrote the stories in prose but later re-
wrote them in verse. Trochaic tetrameter, the metrical form of Long-
fellow’s “Song of Hiawatha,’’ has been followed by the author.

s. a. w.

Yester Years in Edwards County, Illinois. Volume Two. By Edgar L. Dukes.

(Published by the Author, 1948. Pp. 208. $3-50.)

In 1945 the author published a volume of Yester Years that concerned
the history of Edwards County up to the death of Morris Birkbeck in
1825. This little volume continues the story from the death of Birkbeck
to the beginning of the Civil War.

As in the first volume Mr. Dukes has drawn heavily upon contem-
porary sources — wills, letters, travel accounts, etc., and the selections
make very entertaining reading. The author has done a great deal of re-
search, but one feels that he has enjoyed it.

The book is stoutly bound — almost too stoutly, in fact, for it is
difficult to hold open for comfortable reading. This, however, is a minor

108

BOOK REVIEWS

fault. A table of contents would have been a great help; fortunately there
is an index. Misspelling the name of James Stuart, the Scotchman who
visited the English settlement in 1830 is also unfortunate, but probably
none but the Scotch will object. From Stuart’s book Three Years in North
America several interesting observations are quoted. On the whole, how-
ever, volume two of Y ester Years is a useful and certainly readable addition
to the history of this remarkable county.

s. a. w.

LINCOLN AUTOGRAPHS AND FORGERIES

(, Solution to -picture queries on page 82)

1. A forgery on a copy of the Wig-
wam Edition (1860) of Lincoln’s
life and works. As explained in the
text Lincoln was not in the habit of
autographing publications of this
kind. The regularity of the writ-
ing disclosed in the enlargement,
makes this the poorest imitation of
the lot.

2. A genuine signature affixed to a
letter to General H. W. Halleck
dated September 19, 1863- Lincoln
usually put two dots after “A” but
not always.

3. A forgery of Lincoln’s name

signed to a promissory note datec
November 16, 1860. Enlargemen
discloses this signature to be to(
nearly perfect. There is somethin
wrong with the “A.” Moreove
Lincoln in November, 1860, did no|
need to borrow $35 on a note.

4. Lincoln seldom signed “Abn
ham” to a letter but he almost aJ
ways used his full name on a doci
ment. This example is genuine.

5. A forgery by Joseph Cosey. N(
tice how he used porous paper
blur his lines and thus hide the]
irregularity.

NOTES ON THE OLD CAHOKIA COURTHOUSE

Since the 250th anniversary of the founding of Cahokia will be cele-
brated this year it is appropriate that its most familiar landmark should
decorate the front cover of this issue of the Journal. This is the earliest
picture of the Old Cahokia Courthouse in the files of the Illinois State
Historical Library and was made about 1890, or some years before the
building was moved to the St. Louis World’s Fair of 1904. After the fair
it was taken to Chicago where it remained until 1939. Today, on its orig-
inal foundation stones and completely restored by the state, it presents an
entirely different appearance from that of the dilapidated structure shown
on our cover.

Incidentally, the history of the Cahokia Courthouse has never been
well established, but for many years it served as a private dwelling and
because of this its story is in Old Illinois Houses by John Drury which
has just been published by the Illinois State Historical Society. For more
information about the oldest settlement in the Mississippi Valley turn to
Charles E. Peterson’s article, “Notes on Old Cahokia,’’ on page 7.

An elaborate series of civic and religious observances on May 15 to
22 is being planned by the Cahokia 250th Anniversary Association to
mark the founding of the village in 1699- Samuel Cardinal Stritch will
pontificate at a field mass on May 15, opening the ceremonies, and Bishop
Joseph H. Schlarman, of Peoria, will preach the sermon. The mass will
be said on the parish grounds where the Holy Family Church was estab-
lished 250 years ago. Mrs. W. H. Matlack is president of the Associa-
tion.

Members of the Illinois State Historical Society will be able to take
part in this celebration on their Spring Tour on May 20 and 21.

109

110

NEWS AND COMMENT

The editors wish to thank Romaine Proctor, of Springfield (and well
known for his puppet plays), for the new headings that brighten our Illi-
nois Scrapbook, Historical Notes, and Book Reviews departments and
the drawings at the ends of articles, as well as the little fences in this
News and Comment section. These arresting sketches seem especially ap-
propriate for our publication and, with others, will continue to be used
as space permits.

Joseph H. Barnhart generously welcomes members of the Society
who are passing through Danville to visit his house, the old Dr. Fithian
residence at 116 Gilbert Street. This dwelling was built in Danville in
the 1830’s, and from its balcony Lincoln spoke in 1838. It is described in
John Drury’s Old Illinois Houses, pages 78-79.

LETTER TO THE EDITOR

Editors of periodicals usually like to publish laudatory letters, but
that is not the entire reason for the one that follows. The last sentence of
this letter presents a challenge which it is hoped will result in more
biographical sketches such as the one mentioned.

Flossmoor, Illinois
November 21, 1948.

Mr. J. Monaghan , Editor
Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society
Sfr in g field , Illinois.

Dear Jay:

Allow me to congratulate you on a particularly fine number of the
Journal — that for September.

In your introduction to the Book Review section you said — with
commendable gentleness — something that much needed saying. Too
many reviewers, I think, forget that it is their job to give the reader a
good account of the book, and to leave the judgment, as much as possible,
to the reader of the review. The temptation, yielded to much too often,
is to make the review an excuse for a show-off of the reviewer’s own
knowledge of the subject — which may be very great, or (as I have had
occasion to observe) it may not be important enough to justify all the
fireworks shot off.

NEWS AND COMMENT

111

If the book deserves condemnation, then— even then — I think the
reviewer should show a decent reluctance to sink the harpoon too often
or too deep. Even if the reviewer is a scholar who towers far above the
poor devil who wrote the book, it seems to me that the obligation is to
be a gentleman first, and a scholar second. After all, the reader of the
review is interested in the book, not immediately in the relative merits
of the writer and reviewer.

Now let me say a few enthusiastic words for Elizabeth Raymond
Woodward’s portrait of her grandmother. Here is a biographical sketch
that beats anything of the kind I have read in many a day. It has charm.
It has power that comes from its head-on truthfulness— no punches pulled,
no dodging around “matters that had better be left unsaid.’’ So many of
the biographies that are written, as you know, are so denatured for
“policy reasons” that they are feeble things indeed. The pictures of Jane
and Helen are magnificent. In telling this story, Mrs. Woodward does
just about as admirable a job of portraying herself as her grandmother,
and this says much for the vigor of her writing. You are not going to
scare up many biographical sketches as good as this one, Jay.

Sincerely yours,

Harry J. Owens.

Illinois residents along the line of the Alton route of the Gulf, Mo-
bile & Ohio Railroad soon may see the engine that pulled the Freedom
Train. The road has purchased the engine and will place it in service this
spring on its Abraham Lincoln and “Ann Rutledge” trains between
Chicago and St. Louis.

Our readers will be interested to know (although many may have
heard the program) that the Cavalcade of America” on February 7 over
NBC dramatized Zarel C. Spears and Robert S. Barton’s Berry and Lincoln ,
Frontier Merchants: The Store that 7 Winked Out. " The book was reviewed
in the December, 1948, issue of this Journal.

The Society regrets the loss recently of three of its members who
have been associated with the organization for many years.

Minna Worthington Adams (Mrs. Albyn L.) died on January 13.
jMrs. Adams had been a member of the Illinois State Historical Society

112

NEWS AND COMMENT

since 1905- Prominent in Jacksonville and Morgan County, she had de-
voted all of her adult life to the welfare of her community.

On October 16, 1948, Albert H. Griffith, a member of the Society
since 1910, died at Winnebago, Wisconsin. A lifelong resident of Utica,
Wisconsin , Mr. Griffith had spent much of his time since 1900 in the
collection of Lincolniana.

Dr. John H. Ryan, Pontiac clergyman and civic leader and a member
of the Illinois State Historical Society since 1908, died on December 16.
Dr. Ryan, at the time of his death, was also president of the Livingston
County Historical Society.

The Bureau County Historical Society held open house on December
12, in its new home, the former residence of Mrs. Grace L. Norris. The
spacious mansion was host to more than 200 guests during the afternoon
and evening.

The editors are in receipt of the following communication from
Carl Bode, professor of English at the University of Maryland, College
Park, Maryland:

I am writing a book to be entitled, The American Lyceum: Town Meet-
ing of the Mind. It is to be a study of the cultural, historical, and literary
aspects of the lecture system in our country from 1830 to 1860. I would
be indebted to any of your readers who would let me know if a lyceum
existed in their locality before 1860 and, perhaps, where I might write
to secure records of the lyceum if it did exist.

Officers of the Boone County Historical Society are: Larry Kleber, ■ tl
president; Harold Sewell, vice-president; and Miss Nelva Dean, secretary-
treasurer.

At the November meeting the group discussed the purchase of a
building to house the Society’s historical collection. The many relics are
now stored in a barn.

NEWS AND COMMENT

113

The Society’s museum is now open three days a week: Thursday,
Saturday, and Sunday afternoons from one o’clock until five. It will also
be open to groups by appointment.

When the Chicago Historical Society held its ninety-first annual
meeting in October, Director Paul M. Angle announced the recent ac-
quisition of some magnificent gifts. Among these were the late Joseph T.
Ryerson’s collection of Chicago material and a rare painting by Benjamin
West depicting William Penn’s treaty with the Indians. The latter was
the gift of Mrs. Emily Crane Chadbourne.

A new marine exhibit room was opened in November. Ship models
going back to pre-Christian days are displayed. The Society’s Museum
had a total attendance of 143,750 in 1948, a gain of 7,750 over the previous
year.

The Chicago Lawn Historical Society will hold open house on Sun-
day afternoon, May 1, from two until six o’clock at the Chicago Lawn
Library, 6234 South Kedzie Avenue, Chicago. The history of Chicago
Lawn and vicinity will be presented by slides, showing the community
from the time of its beginning. The record will be brought up to date
with a motion picture of Chicago Lawn as it appears now. In addition,
antiques, photographs, old newspapers, programs, and mementos will add
their part to the story of other days and ways.

Officers of the West Side (Chicago) Historical Society are: Miss Pearl
L Lield, honorary life president; Miss Helen Babcock, honorary president;
Bernard Baer, president; J. C. Miller, first vice-president; Albert Keeney,
second vice-president; William Cohn, third vice-president; Tom Connery,
fourth vice-president; Miss Martha Holt, treasurer; and Mrs. Marie Mel-
berg, secretary-historian. Directors are: T. H. Golightly, Mrs. Lois M.
Bergh, Charles A. Bethge, Walter H. Buescher, John L. Butler, Charles
X. Clancy, William Cohn, Dr. Otto Eisenschiml, Miss Signy Hoff, Robert
C. Jamieson, Homer D. Jones, George P. Madigan, Edward C. Connor,
Hobart H. Sommers, and Carl Stockholm.

114

NEWS AND COMMENT

At the Society’s semi-annual meeting in November, George Eastland
recounted the history of the Chicago and North Western Railway Com-
pany. Mr. Eastland is editor of the North Western’s Newsliner. Follow-
ing the railroad story, J. C. Miller used slides to illustrate a discussion of
the Illinois and Michigan Canal. Last spring the Society toured the canal
route on its annual visit to a historical spot.

The Historical Society of Woodlawn (Chicago) had Frank Ingram
Hooper as guest speaker at its meeting on February 11. Mr. Hooper spoke
on “Lincoln, the Man.’’

At the November meeting of the Edwards County Historical So-
ciety, Mrs. Virginia Skinner read a letter written in Albion by J. J. Lam-
bert in 1865 to Captain Lee Woods. Mrs. Skinner also discussed the let-
ter’s interesting gossip and information concerning Albion’s social life
in 1865-

In January, a round-table discussion on “High Lights in Edwards
County History’’ was held.

Dr. Francis L. Bacon presented an illustrated lecture “Homes of the
Presidents’’ at the November public meeting of the Evanston Historical
Society. Dr. Bacon, retiring principal of the Evanston Township High
School, has spent his spare time for many years visiting the homes of the
presidents and collecting the material for his lecture.

A paper of reminiscences by Clyde A. Mann was read at the Decem-
ber meeting of the Geneva Historical Society. The history of another old
Geneva house eligible for a bronze plaque was also presented. The house,
at State and Batavia streets, was built in 1839. Mrs. Forrest Crissey gave

NEWS AND COMMENT

115

a character sketch of “Kit” Shylock, a town charater of some fifty years
ago. Dr. C. H. Lyttle is president of the group.

The Society is offering prizes to students of Geneva schools for
photographs of buildings, streets, and scenic sites that merit preservation
in the Society’s collection. A first prize of $15 and a second prize of $10
will be awarded at the annual meeting of the Geneva Historical Society
on May 8. All contestants will receive a two-year membership in the
Society.

J. L. Buford was the principal speaker at the December meeting of
the Jefferson County Historical Society. Mr. Buford’s subject was Mt.
Vernon and its phenominal growth in the past ten years.

A special Christmas exhibit was featured in December by the Kan-
kakee County Historical Society. Old-fashioned toys and dolls were
among the articles displayed. Also shown were the model ships of
Frederick Greenman and the Pauline Palmer collection of paintings.

The Lake County Historical Society has been reorganized. Honor-
ary president of the group is Governor Adlai E. Stevenson. Other officers
are: Robert Tieken, president; Richard Hantke, vice-president; Mrs. Bess
Dunn, second vice-president; William Sproat, secretary; and Harold Nor-
man, treasurer. On the board of directors are: Lloyd Lewis, George P.
Renehan, Clarence W. Diver, Marjorie Porter, Mrs. Ralph E. West,
Charles Z. Henkle, Albert Hall, Senator Ray Paddock, Edward Arpee,
Ray T. Nicholas, Hermon Dunlap Smith, James R. Getz, and Mrs. George
Ranney, Jr.

William B. Brigham, formerly McLean County superintendent of
schools, was made honorary life president of the McLean County His-
! torical Society and Governor Adlai E. Stevenson was made an honorary
, life member of the Society at the group’s January meeting in Bloomington.

116

NEWS AND COMMENT

Officers of the Society are: Wayne C. Townley, president; W. W.
Wallis, first vice-president; Mrs. Kate Orendorff, second vice-president;
Dr. D. D. Raber, third vice-president; John W. Moore, secretary; Louis

L. Williams, treasurer; the Rev. E. E. Atherton, chaplain; Mrs. Margaret

M. Hoffman, librarian; and Mrs. Inez Dunn, active librarian at the So-
ciety’s museum in the McBarnes Building.

Mr. Townley, who was re-elected for his fourteenth term as presi-
dent, announced the honorary memberships. Mr. Brigham has done out-
standing work in McLean County history for years.

Frank E. Sawyer read a paper on the history of Forsyth at the Decem-
ber meeting of the Macon County Historical Society. The meeting was
held in the Decatur Public Library.

The newly organized Alton Area Historical Society, a chapter of the
Madison County Historical Society, elected the following officers on
December 12: Mrs. F. J. Stobbs, president; Mrs. Anna C. Kranz, vice-
president; Mrs. E. V. Rohde, secretary; Clarence E. Sargent, treasurer; and
Miss Margaret Hall, librarian. Judge Henry B. Eaton, Guy D. Helmick,
and Mrs. Frank Eccles were elected members-at-large. Mrs. Harry L.
Meyer, president of the Madison County Historical Society, presided as
temporary chairman, and Guy D. Helmick as temporary secretary.

The Mattoon Historical Society listened to “voices of history’’ at
its January meeting. The tape recordings and records were presented by
Robert F. LaMere.

Frank Moffitt recounted the tragic story of the Donner Party to theL^
Morgan County Historical Society in November. In January, Attorney*
John Snigg, friend of the late Vachel Lindsay, spoke on “Tramping) 1^
Around Historic Illinois.’’

NEWS AND COMMENT

117

Officers of the St. Clair County Historical Society are: Dr. L. G.

. Osborne, president; Gustave A. Baltz, vice-president; Alvin L. Nebel-
j sick, secretary-manager. Members of the board of directors include: Dr.

J Osborne, William R. Dorris, Charles F. Gergen, B. C. McCurdy, Mr.
1 Nebelsick, John E. Miller, and Mr. Baltz.

New officers were chosen at the January meeting of the Saline County
Historical Society. Those elected are: Fred H. Wasson, president; Ernest
V. Gates, first vice-president; Mrs. Mary Lindsay, second vice-president;
James Bond, treasurer; Mrs. Madeline Holdoway, secretary. Directors
chosen are: L. O. Trigg, T. Leo Dodd, William H. Farley, Miss Alvina
Shestak, and Brose Phillips.

The Rev. Joseph P. Donnelly, librarian of St. Louis University, gave
an interesting talk on Cahokia.

The Stephenson County Historical Society held its second annual
[ Christmas exhibit in December. Rooms showing Christmas through the
I years and displays of handiwork, toys, and Italian, German, and Danish
| cookies were part of the exhibition in the Society’s museum. A preview
of this display was held for members and their guests on December 3.

' Then Christmas carols were sung, and there were refreshments of cran-
berry punch and Christmas cookies.

The Winnetka Historical Society held its post-holiday dinner meet-
ing at the Winnetka Woman’s Club on January 12. More than 100 mem-
! bers attended. Following the dinner, a hobby show for the men and also a
i spelldown were features of the entertainment. The spelldown was won by
! Carleton Prouty with Mrs. William A. McKinney in second place. In the
’ hobby show prizes were awarded to Frank A. Windes, Dr. Arthur A.
j Gilbert, and Frank Pavlik.

118

NEWS AND COMMENT

In the December issue of this Journal we printed a list of people who
joined the Illinois State Historical Society during July, August, and Sep-
tember. Following are the names of those who enrolled during October,
November, and December, 1948.

LIFE MEMBERS

Berger, Albert E Chicago, 111.

Blair, William McCormick. . . .Chicago, 111.

Hinchliff, Ralph Rockford, 111.

Hinchliff, Mrs. Ralph Rockford, 111.

ANNUAL MEMBERS

Abrahamson, Jennie J Chicago, 111.

Abrahamson, Olive I Chicago, 111.

Adams, Stephen M Danville, 111.

Adelman, Victor L Pleasant Plains, 111.

Alexander, William H Wilmette, 111.

Allard, Gerry Springfield, 111.

Allen, Mrs. William J Roodhouse, 111.

Anderson, Mary Chicago, 111.

Asmus, Mrs. C. Edward Galena, 111.

Ballweg, Eleanore L Mt. Vernon, 111.

Barnhart, Joseph H Danville, 111.

Bars, Mrs. Carl Blue Island, 111.

Barton, Dr. W. C Santa Fe, N. M.

Beatty, Edward C. O DeKalb, 111.

Becherer, Dr. C East Peoria, 111.

Bell, Mrs. Robert I Evanston, 111.

Biel, John G Terre Haute, Ind.

Blackwood, George F Chicago, 111.

Bone, Dr. R. G Urbana, 111.

Bradfield, Elston G Chicago, 111.

Bremer, Elsie M Evanston, 111.

Brooks, George Raithel St. Louis, Mo.

Brown, Virginia S Springfield, 111.

Buford, Mr. and Mrs. J. Lester

Mt. Vernon, 111.

Burns, Frank L Galena, 111.

Byars, Mary Warner Kirkwood, Mo.

Cain, P. T Carlinville, 111.

Casper, Mrs. Verna S Chicago, 111.

Chalfont, Mrs. Maude Carmi, 111.

Chervenak, John, Jr Chicago, 111.

Clement, H. Alvin Chicago, HI.

Cleworth, Mark M Elgin, 111.

Clough, Rt. Rev. Charles A. .Springfield, 111.

Cole, Martin Riverside, Calif.

Connery, Robert H Urbana, 111.

Coxey, Mrs. Jane Chicago, 111.

Crew, Henry Evanston, 111.

Cross, Jasper W., Jr St. Louis, Mo.

Crowley, Daniel J Peoria, 111.

Dalstrom, Mr. and Mrs. Gustaf .Chicago, 111.

Danielson, Dorothy M Evanston, 111.

Day, Mrs. Jessie M Clinton, 111.

Day, William L Springfield, 111.

Demand, H. P Evanston, 111.

Dickson, R. C Evanston, 111.

Dixon, Evalyn Avon, 111.

Dole, Mrs. John L Wayne, 111.

Dornan, Peter Chicago, 111.

Dornseif, Norman Chicago, 111.

Dunlea, Thomas A South Bend, Ind.

Edlund, Mrs. E. W Maywood, 111.

Endres, Dr. Fred C Peoria, 111.

Everson, Arthur E Chicago, 111.

Ewen, Mrs. William R. T., Jr. . Evanston, 111.

Felt, Anna Galena, 111.

Fleming, George J Chicago, 111.

Ford, Thomas F Chicago, 111.

Fredenhagen, Mrs. W. S Naperville, 111.

Friedman, Rov J Chicago, 111.

Frizane, L. L Chicago, 111.

Gabriel, Mr. and Mrs. William. .Alton, 111.

Gage, Asahel W Evanston, 111.

Garrett, Dr. Sherman S Champaign, 111.

Gaziano, Rosario A Rockford, 111.

Glos, Hattie G Wayne, 111.

Graham, Betty P Granite City, 111.

Grandy, Harriet Pontiac, III.

Haase, Herbert E Oak Park, 111.

Hackman, Mrs. Henry Peru, III.

Harrell, Mrs. Dallas T. . . .Edwardsville, 111.

Harrison, Mrs. Terese Chicago, 111.

Heck, Mrs. C. G Princeton, 111.

Heer, Harry L Galena, 111.

Helwig, Richard O Chicago, 111.

Hilsabeck, Mrs. Arch Chicago, 111.

Hobart, Helen E Evanston, 111.

Hough, Harry L Mazon, 111.

House, Harriet R East St. Louis, 111.

Hoy, Mrs. Charles R.. .Franklin Grove, 111.

Huggins, Dr. M. J Edwardsville, 111.

Hughes, Robert G Carmi, 111.

Hurley, Jeanne C Wilmette, 111.

Hvale, James L Chicago, 111.

NEWS AND COMMENT

119

Inversetti, W. F Steger, 111.

Seattle, Wash.

' Jacobs, Clarence R Princeton, 111.

James, R. L Russellville, Ala.

Jones, Charles O Decatur, 111.

i Josephson, Carl W Chicago Heights, 111.

: Kaiser, W. L Chicago, 111.

Kalkbrenner, Myrtle Chicago, 111.

Kennedy, Richard L., Jr. . . .Lake Forest, 111.

Keys, Mrs. M. C Metamora. 111.

I Kissner, Fred W Glenview, 111.

, Kleimenhagen, Karl C La Salle, 111.

j Klink, Alice E Chicago, 111.

; Koch, Flora M Jacksonville, 111.

I Kross, Michael Elmhurst, 111.

1 Lambert, Edith S Carthage, 111.

I Larson, Ernest S Wheaton, 111.

Lavezzorio, Nicholas J Evanston, 111.

Le Pacek, Frank S Quincy, 111.

Leverich, Mrs. William K Ottawa, 111.

! Levy, Mrs. Emile Chicago, 111.

Lewis, Geraldine L Dixon, 111.

Ljubenko, Dusan J Chicago, 111.

[ Lyttle, Charles H Chicago, 111.

McCarthy, Thomas J Galena, 111.

I McDougle, Nelle Humboldt, 111.

Marks, Genevieve Bean Chicago, 111.

J Marsden, Marie Galena, 111.

Marwick, Julia Glencoe, 111.

j Marwick, Julius Chicago, 111.

■ Mead, Sidney E Chicago, 111.

| Meehan, Rev. Thomas A Chicago, 111.

[j! Meyer, A1 Chicago, 111.

I Meyer, Mrs. George F Decatur, 111.

.i Milar, Willis H West Chicago, 111.

h Miller, Lloyd G Chicago, 111.

P Mindrup, Mrs. V. H Edwardsville, 111.

(’ Mitchell, Stephen A Chicago, 111.

1 Monahan, Mary Areola, 111.

Morris, Alta M Chevy Chase, Md.

Murphy, David Dixon, 111.

■ Murrah, Mrs. Frank C Herrin, 111.

;Neilsen, Helga Chicago, 111.

tNethercut, Edgar S Evanston, 111.

'.Nickel, H. D Nashville, 111.

'Paul, Charles M Peoria, 111.

Pehlman, Mrs. George L Tallula, 111.

Perry, George W Camden, Me.

Pettit, Dr. Roswell T Ottawa, 111.

Powell, L. E Morrison, 111.

Pover, Mr. and Mrs. Lester C

Des Plaines, III.

Priestley, Mrs. Harriet M Galena, 111.

Reeling, Mrs. Viola C Evanston, 111.

Riggs, Mrs. Ralph Chicago, 111.

Robinson, Harry F Chicago, 111.

Rogier, H. E Vandalia, 111.

Rothfels, Dr. Hans Chicago, 111.

Sanders, Frank B Edwardsville, 111.

Sargent, Mr. and Mrs. Chester V

Winnetka, 111.

Schraudenbach, Austin W., Jr

Champaign, 111.

Schrock, Allen J Tiskilwa, 111.

Scott, Erma Chicago, 111.

Semones, Mrs. Hattie Cloverdale, Va.

Seng, Raymond A Wilmette, 111.

Sharp, Morrison Charleston, 111.

Shaw, Mrs. Viola M Evanston, 111.

Sister Albertus Magnus. . . .River Forest, 111.

Sister Marie Therese Chicago, 111.

Smith, Mrs. Madeline Babcock .Decatur, 111.

Stephenson, Mrs. C. E Moline, 111.

Stevens, B. N Tiskilwa, 111.

Stteissguth, Carl Milwaukee, Wis.

Sutton, Dr. Robert M Urbana, 111.

Szold, J. T Peoria, 111.

Thompson, Emory A Hope, Ark.

Tingley, D. F Champaign, 111.

Todd, Mr. and Mrs. Clyde H

Carbondale, 111.

Tonkin, Marvin Chicago, 111.

Townley, Richard Bloomington, 111.

Tuerk, Fred W Peoria, 111.

Turner, Mrs. Helen D Champaign, 111.

Van Bolt, Roger H Chicago, 111.

Walley, Glen D Peoria, 111.

Walsh, Mary Chicago, 111.

Watson, Fern M Champaign, 111.

Werner, Raymond C Urbana, 111.

White, Mrs. William H Wilmette, 111.

Whiting, Mrs. Estelle S Chicago, 111.

Williams, Mrs. Antoinette L. .Winnetka, 111.

Williams, Mrs. Robert R Carmi, 111.

Willy, Dorothy E Chicago, 111.

Wood, Camilla Peoria, 111.

Younce, Dr. Major L Chicago, 111.

Young, George B Chicago, 111.

You akin, Glenn Springfield, 111.

120

NEWS AND COMMENT

Again we list the names of those individuals and organizations who
deserve the Society’s thanks for adding new members during the period
from July through December, 1948.

Abraham Lincoln Book Shop . . Chicago, III.
Abrahamson, Elmer E Chicago, 111.

Barnhart, Joseph H Danville, 111.

Bone, Dr. R. G Urbana, 111.

Bowman, Rev. and Mrs. F. H. O

Bloomington, 111.

Byars, Fielding L Peoria Heights, 111.

Canaday, Dayton W Litchfield, 111.

Cassida, Ethel Shelbvville, 111.

Chapman, Mrs. W. K Tonic.a, 111.

Clark, Dr. Dwight F Evanston, 111.

Cooke, Mrs. R. S Springfield, 111.

Davis, Emery H Anna, 111.

Dilliard, Irving Collinsville, 111.

Dornseif, Frederic J Chicago, 111.

Duffy, Mollie Dixon, 111.

Dunham, Jane Chicago, 111.

Evanston Historical Society. . .Evanston, 111.

Faulkner, Elizabeth Chicago, 111.

Felts, David V Decatur, 111.

Fisher, Meda Hill River Forest, 111.

Fricke, Fred Sibley, 111.

Fuller, Miles C Peoria, 111.

Goltra, Mabel Hall Jacksonville, 111.

Harrell, Mrs. Dallas T. . . .Edwardsville, 111.

Hayward, Oscar C Winnetka, 111.

Helwig, Richard O Chicago, 111.

Hertz, Gilbert G Kankakee, 111.

Hilsabeck, Mrs. Arch Chicago, 111.

Hochmark, Bertram Park Ridge, 111.

Hoffman, Margaret Bloomington, 111.

Jacobs, Mrs. Cora Sterling, 111.

Jeffery, William O., Jr Evanston, 111.

Jenkins, Naomi S Chicago, 111.

Johnsen, O. Alf Chicago, 111.

Johnson, Mrs. Joseph M Chicago, 111.

Josephson, Victoria. . .Chicago Heights, 111.

Knapp, Mrs. C. E Springfield, 111.

Lentz, E. G Carbondale, 111.

Lewis, Paul O Chicago, 111.

Lockhart, Bess M Aurora, 111.

Long, Everette B Chicago, 111.

Luthy, Godfrey G Oak Hill, 111. I

McDonough, Mrs. H. O Albion, 111.

Mackenzie, Rex Chicago, 111.

Marks, Genevieve B Chicago, 111.

Marwick, Julia Glencoe, 111.

Mathews, Dr. D’Roy Chicago, 111.

Melberg, Marie Western Springs, 111.

Meyer, Mrs. Harry L Alton, 111.

Monaghan, J Springfield, 111.

Mulligan, Rev. Robert A Joliet, 111.

Nelson, Herman G Rockford, 111.

Nickel, Francis D Chicago, 111.

Norman, Nelson F Champaign, 111.

Olmsted, Charles C La Salle, 111.

Pomeroy, J. M Carmi, 111.

Randall, J. G Urbana, 111.

Ranson, Mrs. Addie R Decatur, 111.

Rauhoff, Millard Blue Island, 111.

Reilly, Mrs. Frank C Cantrall, 111.

Rhinesmith, Arthur D Chicago, 111.

Richmond, Mabel E Decatur, 111.

Sargent, Mr. and Mrs. Ralph. .Chicago, 111.

Schenk, Marion Chicago, 111.

Scott, Modesta Areola, 111.

Slater, Dr. R. C La Salle, 111.

Smith, Hermon Dunlap. . . .Lake Forest, 111.

Snow, Willard Springfield, 111.

Stephenson, Mrs. C. E Moline, 111.

Stevens, Jewell F Chicago, 111.

Thompson, Floyd E Chicago, 111.

Thompson, Scerial Harrisburg, 111.

Tilton, Mrs. Clint C Danville, III.

Todd, Roscoe J Elgin, 111.

Unger, John W Danville, 111.

Uthoff, Mary L Princeton, 111.

Warren, Mildred Mt. Vernon, 111.

Wetherbee, S. A Springfield, 111.

Whitney, Mrs. Francis A. . .Springfield, 111.
Woodlawn Historical Society. .Chicago, 111.

SPRINGFIELD, ILLINOIS
June 1949

The Illinois State

HISTORICAL LIBRARY

TRUSTEES

Alfred W. Stern Clarence P. McClelland

Benjamin P. Thomas

The Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society is pub-
lished by the Illinois State Historical Library for distribu-
tion to members of the Society. ;

STAFF OF THE JOURNAL
J. Monaghan, Editor

S. A. Wetherbee and Howard F. Rissler, Associate Editors \

The Illinois State Historical Society is a department of
the State Historical Library. The Society’s purpose is to
collect and preserve data relating to the history of Illinois,
disseminate the story of the state and its citizens, and en-
courage historical research. An annual meeting is held in
October. In May the Society tours some historic neighbor-
hood. Membership is open to all. Dues are $2.00 a year,
or $50 for Life Membership.

Members receive the publications of the Library, which
are printed by authority of the State of Illinois. These pub-
lications are the Journal, a quarterly magazine devoted to
Illinois history, and occasional books and pamphlets on
historical subjects.

Manuscripts submitted for publication should be ad-
dressed to J. Monaghan, Illinois State Historical Society,
Springfield, Illinois.

The editors do not assume any responsibility for the per-
sonal opinions expressed by authors of articles published.

ENTERED AS SECOND-CLASS MATTER ON JULY 5, 1918, AT THE POST OFFICE
AT SPRINGFIELD, ILLINOIS, UNDER THE ACT OF OCTOBER 5, 1917

JOURNAL OF THE

ILLINOIS STATE

Historical Society

Volume xlii Number 2 June 1949

Published four times a year, in March, June, September, and December

STATE OF ILLINOIS
Adlai E. Stevenson, Governor

(Printed by authority of the State of Illinois)

rABLE OF CONTENTS ^ ^ ^ ^ ^

1,loyd Downs Lewis, 1891-1949

Jay Monaghan 127

The Beaubien Claim

Carl B. Roden 147

The Importance of Books

Pearl S. Buck 167

Lincoln in Kansas

Charles Arthur Hawley 179

Motes on Old Cahokia, Part ii

Charles E. Peterson 193

Lincolniana

Who Made the Fingerprints ? by Jay Monaghan 209

Historical Notes

Three Hardscrabble Scribes 213

[llinois Scrapbook 216

Book Reviews 226

News and Comment 238

| ILLUSTRATIONS ^ ^ ^

| Jean Baptiste Beaubien’s Chicago (1820) Front Cover

[ Lloyd Downs Lewis 126

| Lloyd Lewis Joins Carl Sandburg in a Ballad 144

Mean Baptiste Beaubien 149

[ Chicago in Beaubien’s Time and Now 152

The Beaubien Claim as Laid out in City Lots 159

Chicago in 1853 164

Lincoln in 1859 190

Map of Cahokia, 1766 (?) 200

Fingerprints Thought to be Lincoln’s 210

Matile’s Version of the Lincoln Fingerprints

211

LLOYD DOWNS LEWIS, 1 89 1 - 1949

BY JAY MONAGHAN

FROM 1937 to 1945 Lloyd Lewis served as trustee of the
Illinois State Historical Library and in that capacity became
a guiding influence in the development of the Historical So-
ciety which is a department of the Library. Lloyd worked
constantly to have the membership in the Society increased in
order that a large number of people might benefit from a
knowledge of the state’s history. His many books on history
were all aimed at the non-professional intelligentsia. For his-
torians to write for historians alone was a type of inbreeding
repugnant to him.

Lloyd Lewis resigned from the Library board and also
from his position as managing editor of the Chicago Daily
News in order to finish a biography of Ulysses S. Grant. In the
early morning hours of Thursday, April 21, 1949, he died
suddenly from coronary thrombosis at his Libertyville home.
The manuscript for his first Grant volume had just been com-
pleted. The shock of his very sudden death stunned the usu-
ally callous newspaper profession. Late editions of the Thurs-
day morning papers recorded the bare facts of his life. By
Saturday and Sunday the shock was subsiding and the hurt
began. Dazed newsmen expressed their pain in editorials across
the land. Playwright Marc Connelly flew in from New York;
Governor Stevenson boarded a plane in Springfield to attend
the outdoor services in the garden of the Lewis home by the
Des Plaines River. On the following day Lloyd Lewis was
buried in the Quaker cemetery at Pendleton, Indiana, across

127

128

LLOYD DOWNS LEWIS, 1891-1949

Spring Valley from the farmhouse where he had been born
on May 2, 1891. Beside him lay two generations of his fore-
bears and a few Civil War soldiers under little faded Union
flags — veterans of the Army of the Tennessee who in their old
age had told a brilliant and inquisitive boy the things that they
remembered.

Lloyd Lewis was a Quaker, reared in an atmosphere of
Civil War tradition and also in the best culture of the mid-
lands. Both his father and mother enjoyed a deep appreciation
of literature, and Lloyd cut his teeth on the rhythms of Whit-
tier, McGuffey, Will Carlton, and James Whitcomb Riley.
Dickens appealed to the family rather than Scott. Always Lloyd
found more companionship with his parents and his sister
Louise than with distant neighbor children. His father and he
rode in a buggy along soft dirt roads to town or to visit his
grandfather, Joseph Lewis, and two unmarried aunts, Maude
and Evangeline Lewis. Bits of philosophy from these elders
embedded themselves in his character. Joseph Lewis — a great
favorite — told him, "I suppose thee will never want to be
known among thy friends as a good boy.” Joseph himself
was remembered as a rebel with a quicker answer than other
members of the Friends’ meeting. This is important to
remember, for all his life Lloyd delighted in being the jolly
rebel of the community — a man who could say things that
upset satisfied people and made them laugh at themselves, too.
The bigger they were the harder Lloyd struck so it was always
a compliment to be attacked.

I first met Lloyd Lewis in the autumn of 1909 when we
both arrived as freshmen at Swarthmore College. Even then
he had thoughtful but peculiarly penetrating eyes and a mouth
that smiled easily. His skill at seeing through human affecta-
tion fascinated me. Perhaps the attraction was enhanced be-
cause certain professors at college were the victims of his
acumen. I remember we read Tom Sawyer together instead of
memorizing characterless logarithms. The pages about the

JAY MONAGHAN 129

^school children showing off before the pompous visitor tickled
both our funny bones. We gloated over the young lady teach-
ers who showed off too, lifting pretty warning fingers at bad
little boys. We liked the description of the school librarian
flitting hither and yon with arms full of books and face glow-
ing with the exaltation of "insect authority.” Then came the
nubbin — the popper of the story — the part where the visitor,
superior to all the little show-offs, begins to show off himself.

In class after class Lloyd pointed out similar scenes of
professorial "showing-off” that have haunted me from that
day to this — and certainly have cheered many a tedious lecture
in my graduate student days. At Swarthmore, too, I’m sure that
I learned more of lasting value from Lloyd Lewis than from the
professors. The refreshing thing about Lloyd then and later was
his ability to see an element in a situation that was perfectly
plain after he pointed it out but invisible before he did so. For
example, I remember sitting with him in 1928 at a stockmen’s
convention, watching a demonstration of meat cutting. Lloyd
whispered that the butcher surrounded with his red blocks
of meat reminded him of a bishop at high mass. The likeness
jwas perfect, and when the august fellow cut a lamb into a
crown roast we saw through the tears of stifled laughter a
perfect enactment of the crowning of Charles VII in Reims.
Years later, with Governor Henry Horner, Lloyd was present
when a lesser politico received a kindly but firm reprimand.
Lloyd said, "As I watched the Governor, I heard his collar
twitch. It began to turn around on his neck. His coat, chame-
leon-like, took on a ruddy color, and I could see a lace chasuble
on his shoulders. For a moment I knew that I was watching a
great pontiff dealing with a devout but erring believer. Then
the Governor’s collar turned back around on his neck and I saw
that he was Henry Horner, the state’s Chief Executive once
more.”

One of the characteristics peculiar to Lloyd Lewis was his
ability to laugh with Henry Horner, or any other man whom

130

LLOYD DOWNS LEWIS, 1891-1949

he respected, over these flights of imagination — and the great
men never got angry or provoked. "They never do,” Lloyd told
me once, "if you’re careful and never joke with a fool. Grand-
father used to tell me that out in Pendleton when I was a kid.”

Lloyd Lewis did not distinguish himself at college for
academic performance. He did an outstanding job editing the
school paper and got into trouble for printing some uncompli-
mentary truths about the college board of managers. He liked
to dance, followed the athletic teams and pitched on the second
baseball nine. Campus mischief also attracted him. One night'
he and I painted our class numerals inside the translucent;
library clock, a feat of some daring that required scaling the
clocktower with buckets of paint. Every quarter-hour the clock
struck with accompanying chimes while sharp propeller blades;
fanned the machinery to blow away dust. We had to wait until;
the interval between chimes to crawl through the blades andf
paint like fury so we could get out before the deadly machinery;
began to whirl again. On another night we experimented with;
the psychology of fear in a manner not taught in class. We
noticed the night watchman eyeing us suspiciously and de-
cided to test his nerve. Both of us darted behind trees, peered
out at him, ran forward and back like stealthy Indians in
pantomime. The watchman stood it for a few minutes ther
his courage failed him. He drew his revolver, shot, and re*
treated heroically into the nearest dormitory — typical example
of showing off. Lloyd’s eyes sparkled. "We’ve been undej
Are,” he said.

At Swarthmore Lloyd had to change his major a time 01
two before he could And a corps of teachers bright enough tc
discern his talents. On Commencement Day he was not sure
that he would get his degree. Great applause from the student:
greeted the final decision and Lloyd has always been the clas:
of 1913’s most distinguished son. Yet, to the end, he alway;
maintained that it took him ten years to outgrow the hatrec
of history he developed in class at Swarthmore. While Lloyc

JAY MONAGHAN 131

. Lewis was rebelling against academic history I gained my first
fondness for the subject — not in class, however, but from the
conversation of Lloyd Lewis. A story of his about Tom Corwin
of Ohio was responsible for my decision to lay down the
[ scalpel and begin studying man’s actions instead of his organs.

I wonder how much the compelling character of Lloyd Lev/is
[ has affected the lives of others besides myself — plenty, I’m
: sure.

At college Lloyd Lewis displayed another trait that would
be lifelong — his liberal position in politics. Lloyd came to
r Swarthmore a defender of Uncle Joe Cannon, who was con-
| sidered a hopeless reactionary by people who believed them-
. selves liberals. Lloyd knew all the answers about prosperity
under conservatism: high tariff, high wages, and a high

l standard of living. His Civil War background in Pendleton
rested on Republican principles forged in the Bessemer flame
| of the nation’s hottest of all wars. In 1912 he opposed
- Roosevelt’s bolting the party but during the campaign Lloyd
[ changed. It was a great emotional experience for I remember
he wrote me a letter about it from Pendleton early in the
. summer. He began with the usual humorous descriptions of
i farm life. Milking cows, he said, was uncomfortable as it
: had always been. Cows had a bad way of switching a fellow
in the face with their frayed-wire tails. Lloyd said that he had
tried to take advantage of his new college education by apply-
ing academic ingenuity in the cowshed. He had tied Bossy’s
! tail down to a brick, but the scheme failed. She’d swung tail,
brick and all, and knocked him off his stool as neatly as Jack
Johnson could have done. Then Lloyd told about the political
: convention, Teddy Roosevelt’s Armageddon speech and the
! seething reaction in the Midwest. He said that he and his father
! had decided to man the barricades.

Lloyd took another step away from the Republican Party
during Woodrow Wilson’s second administration but he did
; not make up his mind to be a Democrat permanently until

132

LLOYD DOWNS LEWIS, 1891-1949

Coolidge’s presidency, although Harding certainly helped
mightily to make up his mind. To the end I believe that Lloyd
considered himself part of the Bull Moose bolt from the Re-
publican Party but he lived to say that Teddy Roosevelt was
something of a Boy Scout 'who did everything that I wanted i
to do when I was twelve years old.”

For two years after Lloyd was graduated he worked for
the North American in Philadelphia. A few of his feature
stories on midland rural life written for the Sunday supple-
ment disclosed the future ahead of him. Then his father died
suddenly and Lloyd, with his mother and sister, moved to Chi- 1
cago to live. He had heard about the Windy City from boy-
hood neighbors who attended the World’s Fair. Farmers took !
their hogs to the stockyards annually and came back with gro- \
tesque stories. Lloyd had been there, too, as a visitor but his first
job on the old Record Herald was open-sesame to everything:
he treasured for the remainder of his life. I happened to be
going through Chicago to a ranch I owned in Colorado om
the day of Lloyd’s first big assignment — the capsizing of the
Eastland in the Chicago River with the loss of 812 people. On;
another trip across the continent I dropped in at the Record
Herald office and was told by Lloyd in a gay voice that the;
paper had "gone broke,” would I wait a half hour until he;
finished the story he was writing, then he must hunt another
job. During that afternoon I realized for the first time how;
Lloyd had become perfect master of any situation. The office;
was full of excited reporters, both men and women, talking!
about the crash, wondering where they could get new jobs,;
boasting about offers, promising scoops, in short, "showing;
off.” Lloyd saw through it all as he always did. When he fin-
ished his story he turned in the copy and we went home. Lloyd I
bought a box of candy for his mother and gave it to her with;
the bad news. We had a jolly evening looking at quaint pic- :
tures of the Columbian Exposition. Next day I traveled west
to Colorado and when I heard from Lloyd again he was work-

JAY MONAGHAN

133

in g for Hearst. A society editor, he said, named Mary
Dougherty, was teaching him more about reporting than he
ever knew before, how to build up interest in one character
whether he be athlete, actor, or financier; how to identify the
reader with this character and make his problems and achieve-
ments the reader’s own. Lloyd married this famous newspaper
woman’s sister, Kathryn, in 1925.

With the coming of World War I, Lloyd served in the
I Navy as Chief Petty Officer of Intelligence on Navy Pier. He
commuted daily from his home in Hyde Park. The Illinois
Central suburban trains ran along the water front in those days
| and once when a gale blew heavy seas over the track Lloyd
walked the full length of the train, getting splashed on every
I platform, laughing that no one could say he was a sailor who
( didn’t know rough weather. The irrepressible Navy man in
his blue uniform and visored cap also used to stand on the
I platform at 54th Street and ask people for their tickets. Pas-
i sengers were unused to uniforms in those days. Once a Swarth-
more fraternity brother in the new tailored tunic of a second
lieutenant stopped for a visit at the hospitable Lewis home.
In the morning Lloyd led him down to the train a little late.
To make the train Lloyd climbed over a sooty gate. The Lieu-
tenant followed. Then, with his immaculate olive drab hope-
lessly smeared, the Army man realized that an open passageway
had been available at one side all the time.

Lloyd always relished practical jokes of this kind. Years
later at the height of his fame as a drama critic he was walking
out of the theater once when he spied the renowned Chicago
Tribune columnist, Charles Collins, taking a short cut behind
the popcorn counter. Lloyd whistled to attract the attention of
the first nighters. Then he tapped a quarter on the glass counter
and called to Collins, "Boy, give me two Crackerjacks, please.”
After World War I, Lloyd became publicity man for
Balaban & Katz with an office in the Roosevelt Theater. He
carried several private press agent accounts as well. I was dis-

134 LLOYD DOWNS LEWIS, 1891-1949

charged from the Aviation Section at Chanute Field at this
time and immediately afterward met Lloyd at luncheon with
Frank Lloyd Wright in Chicago. The sheep business was boom-
ing in the West and I had a herd of cattle leased on shares.
Sheep seemed much better property but we knew that the cow-
men would fight if we tried to bring them on my old range.
Lloyd and I decided that the jig was worth the music and
in the spring of 1919 we went into partnership, moved a herd
of sheep from Utah into the forbidden territory of Colorado.
The scrap we were looking for came quickly. Our banker heard
about a threatened raid and sent word for us to pay up or move.

I hired a small army of riflemen, set them to work chopping
down trees and hewing out water troughs for the sheep. Then
I wired Lloyd to come see the fireworks. Over on the stage line
across the Uintah Basin I met him with two fast horses. A ride
of a day and a half put us in the mountains at the sheep camp.
As yet there had been no shooting but we learned that the
cowboys were moving a supply of coffee and flour into a cabin
ten miles away. That sounded bad. We felt pretty safe with
our "army” but the cost promised to consume all our profits, i
We worked out a plan to dismiss our army and still stay on ;
the range. Why not file homesteads around the sheep and let
Uncle Sam protect us settlers from unlawful attacks of cattle
barons? I had already used my rights but Lloyd offered to file
and so did several of our young horsemen. We selected one of ;
them to accompany us to the land office and act as witness. ;
Fie was a likable, laughing fellow named Jabez who stood!
around with his mouth open. The three of us slipped out of
camp after dark and headed for the town of Lay seventy-five |
miles away. This was like painting the college clock again.

Next morning we were in an entirely different country,
but the rising sun kept us from losing direction. We decided
to pass ourselves off as traveling cowboys in case we met any
riders. As the sun rose, confidence in our companion went
down. We wondered if he would be able to keep his mouth

JAY MONAGHAN

135

jhut in an emergency. During the day we jumped a coyote and
Jabe spurred away shooting and yelling. Lloyd and I watched
from a knoll until the animal escaped. I remember how Lloyd
laughed when we saw the rider coming back looking reproach-
fully at his gun, evidently blaming that weapon for his own
failure. "Baseball players will do that same thing,” Lloyd said,
"but the bleachers are on to them. How the crowd howls when
a man is struck out and looks to see if his bat is crooked.”

That night, very tired and hungry, we rode into a ranch.
i Some cowmen fed us a good supper and bunked us in an empty
granary. Jabe had talked too much, as we were sure he would,
and we wrapped up in our saddle blankets confident that our
identity was suspected. The men looked like tough characters.
One had an eye knocked out. Another was snaggle-toothed
and had hair on his nose. A third, with a "chalk eye,” wore
a hard, sinister look. We could hear them mumbling in
the log house after we lay down and they did not blow out
; the light for what seemed an unnecessarily long time. Lloyd
had a Luger that a classmate had brought back from Germany
i after the war. Jabe and I had Colts and Winchesters. We all
; took turns watching and sleeping. Lloyd enjoyed every minute
| of it and next morning after we were out of sight of the cabins
he kept us roaring with laughter as he mimicked "the cock-
| eyed cattlemen.” Jabe, convulsed with mirth, begged Lloyd not
to tell another story until we came to a place where there "ain’t
no pricklypears so’s a feller can roll on the ground and have
i his laugh out.”

At the land office we had another laugh when the Register-
and-Receiver got mixed up on the forms, didn’t know a desert
entry from a homestead, and warned his wife not to fill in the
blanks as she had done on the "last batch that was sent back
on us.”

For fourteen years Lloyd and I were partners in the sheep
business. I came East at shipping time each fall and enjoyed
a few days of Lloyd Lewis hospitality — lavish living and the-

136

LLOYD DOWNS LEWIS, 1891-1949

aters. Every summer he came West — at first alone but later
with Kathryn and friends. How the girls’ eyes danced when we >
sat down at table with a dozen rangemen in high-heeled boots i|
and weather-warped faces! We usually took a pack trip visiting
the camps.

Lloyd delighted in the original philosophy of the herders.
Old Tom Blevins’ Gargantuan imagination reminded Lloyd
of Rabelais and he immortalized the ancient cowman in
It Takes All Kinds. Shrewd and witty Oscar Collet made ;
Lloyd think of Voltaire and after one trip Lloyd sent him a
box of College Inn canned delicacies because Oscar had said
that some day he hoped to taste "hummen-bird tongues and
patty-de-funny-de-graugh.” With Juan Torres, half-breed;
from the camp of Geronimo, the cutthroat Indian, Lloyd lis-
tened to talk about love. I had enjoyed all of these fellows
but Lloyd proved to me the fineness of his mind when he came i
to the ranch house one afternoon with good stories about the ;
ranch blacksmith, a dull fellow indeed. Yet Lloyd had found
colors in him warm and vivid as the heat waves on the steel old
Jimmie tempered. "Any reporter can make a good story out of
a good event,” Lloyd used to say. "A good newspaperman is
one who can make a good story out of a drab event.” Lloyd:
Lewis was a superlative newsman by anyone’s standards.

In 1929 Lloyd sent me a copy of his first book, Myths After j \
Lincoln. He had told me that the book was almost finished
when I was East at shipping time the previous fall. To read on: ;
the Pullman he had supplied me with several notes and pam-'
phlets on the age-old "dying god legend,” and asked me to
read them carefully. He thought that the American people had!
used Lincoln to satisfy a craving for a national dying god. The;
trip from Chicago to the ranch consumed four of the gone days: 1
of twenty years ago, so I read and reread all Lloyd’s material;
and agreed that he had a case. When the book came I opened!' 1
the package at White River Ranch twenty-one miles below;
Meeker, Colorado, and I’m sure that I was more excited thanl £

JAY MONAGHAN

137

Lloyd had been when I first saw his name on the title page.
Then I began to read :

It was strangely quiet even for Sunday, this ninth day of April, 1865,
is Ulysses S. Grant jogged along the Virginia road that led to Appomat-
:ox Court House, his head drooping on his stubby little body. . . . Extra-
ordinary spectacle, this man Grant as he rode to Appomattox. Whatever
Lie was at that moment he owed to war. . . . yet he hated war, and for all
iiis terrible willingness to fight, he had been scheming and scheming to
stop the bloody business — scheming to halt the very thing that was mak-
jing him immortal. . . .

Into a two-story brick house on the edge of a tiny village he went
as to his own surrender, dust and ashes over his mussy uniform, a private’s
stained overcoat upon his back, looking, as he entered, like a Missouri
rarmer who had by mistake crawled into a blouse that carried, unnoticed,
three little silver stars on its shoulders.

Awaiting him was Lee, who of all men knew that those stars were
qo mistake. . . .

The pages read today as well as they did twenty years
[ago. Perhaps they will read as well twenty, or forty years hence,
:for here are the three dimensions that immortalized Parkman
as a historian — design, color, and fact.

Reviewers were more unkind to Myths After Lincoln than
to any other book Lloyd Lewis ever wrote. Maybe the thesis
(was too unorthodox, the mode of presenting an unpleasant
conclusion too compelling for comfort. In spite of the critics
Lloyd’s first book was reprinted abroad within ten years and
[distributed in America as a Blue Ribbon Book. In 1941 the
Readers Club selected it for a new printing and a paper-backed
•edition of 250,000 copies was sent to servicemen overseas.
The volume is one of the few in the vast area of Lincolniana
;that influenced later research and publications.

My copy of Myths After Lincoln contained the following
inscription in Lloyd’s handwriting: "To J. Monaghan for
twenty years my best friend with the hope that this will not
interrupt our friendship for the next twenty.” Exactly twenty
years elapsed before that friendship was interrupted on April
21, 1949. Another book came to me on the ranch from Lloyd
in 1929. It was autographed "To J. my closest friend ('closest’

138

LLOYD DOWNS LEWIS, 1891-1949

in this world certainly and probably my only friend in the ;
next).” This volume, Chicago, the History of Its Reputation, ;
had Part II written by Henry Justin Smith, managing editor of
the Chicago Daily News, and I was not surprised to learn that
Lloyd had given up his job with the Balaban & Katz theaters
to become drama critic on the News. In Chicago as in Myths
After Lincoln Lloyd held the reader for chapter after chapter
with passages such as this one from page 73:

To the roaring frontier city in 1855 there comes a certain Kentuckian j
with a black slouch hat on his massive head and a ten-year-old Yale di-
ploma behind him in some Lexington attic — a gusty youth of thirty, j
familiar with Paris and Berlin, leaving St. Louis now to have a look at :
this place called Chicago. The girl whom he has just married is with
him, yet even on his honeymoon he falls in love with the city — so much ;
in love that all the rest of his life he will call Chicago his “bride.”

He walks around the streets, then says, “I think Chicago is destined
to be the greatest city on this continent. I have decided to cast my lot
with it.” And, like a Doge of Venice marrying the Adriatic Sea, Carter i
H. Harrison the First weds himself to the city whose young figure he can
see ripening under its blowsy homespun dress.

With these two books Lloyd Lewis took his place as one
of the famous Chicago School — Carl Sandburg, Sherwood
Anderson, Ben Hecht, Theodore Dreiser, and others — a group
of writers who, for a decade, made Chicago the literary capital
of the world. In 1932 Lloyd Lewis wrote Sherman: Righting
Prophet and was awarded a Phi Beta Kappa key from the
Swarthmore chapter.

Lloyd was particularly well suited for this definitive biog-
raphy. Like Sherman he grew up in the midlands and also he j
knew Civil War documents as well as any man. In addition!
Lloyd was a great artist. His genius lay in his ability to mix
the colors available in historical sources into a single vivid !
picture. Sherman was reared as a son in the large family of ;
Thomas Ewing — Old Solitude. Later he married Old Solitude’s
daughter. Note how Lloyd words it:

Love between them was ripening slowly, almost without recogni-
tion. None of the Ewing family could ever say when the bond between the

JAY MONAGHAN

139

|>oy and girl had ceased to be that of brother and sister and begun to be
hat of man and maid. The change came as easily as spring glided into
ummer each year in the Hockhocking Valley.

A classic chapter in Sherman is Lloyd’s prose-poetry de-
scription of the night Sherman made his great decision, cut
limself free from his base and marched blindly to the sea.
Equally gripping is the description of Sherman’s tattered and
barefoot soldiers tramping past the reviewing stand in Wash-
ington at the end of the war:

The Capitol was blooming with flags. The morning was bright and
ioft. A cannon boomed. Nine o’clock! Sherman shook a spur; his horse
,;tepped forward, drumsticks made the air flutter like flying canister or
wild-geese wings. Bands blared into “The Star-spangled Banner.’’
Around the corner of the Capitol the Westerners came.

Stage fright stuck in plowboys’ throats. The roofs and trees were
flack with people. Pennsylvania Avenue stretched like a long, long river
between human banks. White handkerchiefs waved like apple blossoms
n an Indiana wind. Boys’ eyes caught blurred sights of signs spanning
idle avenue — “Hail to the Western Heroes’’ . . . “Hail, Champions of
jdelmont, Donelson, Shiloh, Vicksburg, Chattanooga, Atlanta, Savannah,
Bentonville — Pride of the Nation.’’

Cheers crashed against the blushing faces of the marchers. Their
ips twitched and their eyes fell in self-consciousness. Many of them
wished they were back among the swamps of Carolina — even among the
pullets of Vicksburg. J. W. Anderson, Company G, Nineteenth Illinois,
beard people pray as his regiment swept by; he noted sobbing women hold
up babies to see the soldiers. Mourning still hung on buildings — mourn-
,ng for Lincoln. Crape draped all flags. Now and then curious cheers
welled up from the marching men, wild cries arising from the excitement
jmd from comprehending at last the tremendous miles behind them.

Sherman, riding ahead, his old slouch hat in hand — the sun on his
*ed hair — was listening to the tread of his men. Sometimes in sudden
lushes he could hear one footfall behind him. The hushes came when
imbulances rolled by with bloodstained stretchers fastened on their sides.
Tales of laughter followed hushes, as at the end of the corps came Negro
•efugees of both sexes and all ages, leading or riding mules, walking be-
ide wagons filled with tents and kettles surmounted by turkeys and pet
•accoons. Pigs grunted from end gates here and there. Gamecocks rode
:annon, crowing. Ragamuffin Negroes bearing Revolutionary blunder-
busses grinned at guffawing spectators.

Sherman hoped, as perhaps he had never hoped anything in his life-
line, that his men were marching well. They sounded all right, but he
Wouldn’t be sure in the roaring current of noise. They must show the East

140 LLOYD DOWNS LEWIS, 1891-1949

that they were not “an undisciplined mob.’’ Sherman neared the White
House, where the test would come. Ellen would be in the stand, with
Tommy and Old Solitude; Willy’s eyes would not be there to shine. Cold
eyes of elegant society people would be leveled.

Sherman’s horse walked up the avenue slope before the Treasury
Building. In a minute it would swing to the right and come into view of
the stand. Behind him he heard the tumult growing louder. Were his
wild young fellows behaving? He dared not look back; he had ordered
everybody to hold eyes front.

He was on the crest of the rise now. He could hold his nerves no ;
longer. He spun in the saddle and looked. A blissful thrill ran to his
finger tips. His legions were coming in line, every man locked in steady
formation — formal for perhaps the first and the last time in their lives. I
“They have swung into it,’’ said Sherman to himself. Long afterwards
he said, “I believe it was the happiest and most satisfactory moment of
my life.’’

The whole army was thin. Carl Schurz, in the stand, felt his heart j
leap as the Westerners wheeled into view — “nothing but bone and muscle -
and skin under their tattered battle-flags.’’ Their flags were thin, too,
from winds and bullets — many were nothing but shreds of faded red and i
white and blue. Cheers drowned the bands. The street in front of the f
stand was ankle-deep in flowers — worn heels, bare heels, kept step among i
the roses.

For these vivid descriptions Lloyd depended on regi- j
mental histories. Another great historian, John Bach Me- j
Master, is pointed out as the writer who taught the profession !
to use contemporary newspapers. Lloyd Lewis deserves equal |
recognition among his fellows for popularizing regimental j
histories as a source for what the man in the ranks really
thought, said, and did. As trustee of the Illinois State Histori- j
cal Library, Lloyd continually urged the purchase of such
volumes. The generosity of Alfred W. Stern, of Chicago, has
made this desire of Lewis’ come true and today the Historical
Library contains what is perhaps the best Civil War library in
the world.

Three years after writing Sherman: Fighting Prophet ,
Lloyd collaborated with Sinclair Lewis on a play, The Jay-
hawker. It was smashing drama at the first curtain but after
that their plot failed to hold the audience. Lloyd always said
that he did not understand the game and should not have tried j

JAY MONAGHAN

141

t — a revealing reply disclosing one sinew of Lloyd Lewis’
trength: his ability to measure his own talents, in other words
good judgment.” Lord Beaconsfield is credited with refusing
o toss a cricket ball into the field saying, "One should despise
.n exercise in which he cannot excel.” Lloyd worded it with
nore force, "I don’t understand long division and a monkey
yrench is a profound mystery to me.”

As a desk head in the drama department of the Chicago
Daily News , Lloyd was supposed to eat luncheon with other
:hiefs. Managing Editor Henry Justin Smith presided asceti-
:ally at the table’s center. Lloyd admired Smith but he usually
nade excuses to escape the regal luncheon board, preferring
o eat with a cronie or two — sometimes Howard Vincent
O’Brien and Howard Mann — at a counter in the North West-
ern station. Official recognition of rank or social class always
oored Lloyd. Individuals, not organizations, appealed to his
ancy, and it made no difference if the man was a taxicab
driver, Pullman porter, professional poet, baseball player,
:>rize fighter, actor, U. S. senator, or governor, provided he
vas genuine, unaffected, enjoyed wit and originality.

Strangely enough, campus life always tempted the man
who as a boy hated history in school. Once he seriously con-
sidered taking a salary reduction of sixty-six per cent to teach
it Carleton College. "Think of being paid,” he told me, "for
:alking an hour or two a day about the thing that interests me
post in life!” For a term he lectured at the University of
Chicago.

In 1936 Lloyd wrote, with Henry Justin Smith, Oscar
Wilde Discovers America. The book was Smith’s idea. He had
already collected many notes on the subject when he asked his
dramatic critic to collaborate. Lloyd tackled the job with his
usual diligence and insistence that no source be left unex-
plored. I went from the ranch up to Leadville to search for
Wilde material in that onetime boom town. Then I boarded
the train for Denver and spent a week among the newspaper

142

LLOYD DOWNS LEWIS, 1891-1949

files of 1882 picking, shoveling, and assaying every nugget i
of Oscar Wilde ore I could find. The book appeared at the
time Lloyd assumed another duty on the News. He was ap-
pointed sports editor as well as drama critic. "It’s a job,” he
wrote, "to keep Ethel Barrymore from playing third base” — but
he did and in addition to managing both departments, built a
Frank Lloyd Wright house at Liberty ville — a dream house :
for him and Kathryn if ever there was one. Lloyd straightened
out the crookedest phase of professional sport with his usual:
effective satire. Sham and artifice had never deceived him since
college days. He saw at once that wrestling matches were
framed with melodramatic hammer locks, half nelsons, groans, *
and grimaces. To the promoters’ chagrin, Lloyd reported them
on the drama instead of the sports page. Professional wrestling I
has never been taken seriously since. In the thick of this disclo- ;
sure Lloyd wrote, on contract for the Prairie Parmer, a biog-
raphy entitled John S. Wright, Prophet of the Prairies. This
thin volume of two hundred and fifteen pages was not gen-
erally reviewed but it warrants more recognition than it re-
ceived for in it Lloyd Lewis excavated some hitherto unused
material on the wool operations in Ohio of Old John Brown;
in the days before his body "lay a-moulderin’ in de grave.”
Lloyd Lewis received his last promotion in 1943 when he:
became managing editor of the News. He moved into the top
office overlooking the Chicago River and placed his desk with
his back to the window. "I know the kind of people who will;
come in here,” he said, "to ask for favors and space, and tell
about news that is going to break. Some will be dependable
but there will also be gangsters and grafters, crooks and im-
postors. I want those people to sit with the light in their faces.!
They’ll look out the windows, see things, watch the sea gulls
flying up the river. That will distract their minds ever so little
but it will give me an advantage that I’ll need.”

Burdened with great responsibility and daily deadlines^
Lloyd watched his health. I was with him one day at the Pres-j

JAY MONAGHAN

143

byterian Hospital after a minor operation. We expected the
doctor in a few minutes to administer a very painful dressing.
Lloyd talked about history, politics, baseball, drama, until
the doctor arrived and the nurse laid out the instruments. Then
Lloyd reached for the phone and called the office. He outlined
plans for department after department, made suggestions, dis-
cussed pictures to be taken. When the doctor finished, Lloyd
hung up the receiver. Perhaps he had not really felt the pain
too much. Certainly no reader of the News ever suspected
what excruciating stimulation had guided the next edition of
the paper hawked on the street.

After the death of Frank Knox everyone knew that the
News would be sold. Rumors said that John S. Knight was
i considering the purchase. One day Marc Connelly, the play-
wright, stopped to see Lloyd. A whisper went through the big
office that Knight had come. Lloyd heard it and decided to give
the staff the thrill they wanted. With Connelly he inspected the
plant. Reporters pounded typewriters, everyone was busy mak-
ing a good impression on the new boss. Connelly played his
part in the deception, pompously asking questions, making
profound suggestions about better efficiency.

In 1945 Lloyd retired to his picturesque home at Liberty-
ville to write the volumes that he had planned for years. "I can
j hear the guns of Shiloh,” he told associates. He plowed a
1 good garden spot among the trees and experimented with
; hogs and chickens. A picture of his pigs lying on clean straw
: reading pages of Fortune, tacked on the side of their pen for
insulation, gained some notoriety. The Lewis house — not the
hog house — was constantly full of notables: Marc Connelly,
j Carl Sandburg, Frank Lloyd Wright, Oscar Hammerstein,

! Alexander Woollcott, Marshall Field, F.P.A. People won-
dered how Lloyd ever had time to write. Harcourt, Brace and
Company published a volume of his magazine stories and
newspaper columns entitled It Fakes All Kinds. Northwestern
University displayed academic vision by conferring a doctorate

Lloyd Lewis Joins Carl Sandburg in a Ballad

JAY MONAGHAN 145

on the rare scholar who had reached an outstanding eminence
by non-academic trestles. Lloyd joined the Newberry Library
staff as an editorial consultant and he wrote a weekly column
for the Chicago Sun — later the Sun-Times. A new book,
Granger Country, co-edited by Lewis with Stanley Pargellis,
was in press at the time of Lloyd’s death. Two weeks before
Lloyd died he asked me to collaborate with him on a pictorial
history of western horror prints — the amusingly horrendous
illustrations of massacres, train robberies, scalping episodes
that had given the semi-literate people their ideas about the
• frontier. This book, mind you, was in addition to the four vol-
umes he planned for Grant and a Kansas history that had
! been on ice for a decade. Yet with all this pressure of ideas
Lloyd never seemed in a hurry. He always had time to talk with
; anyone and ugly problems had a way of becoming both
humorous and unimportant after chewing them over with
Lloyd. Children particularly delighted him and he would drop
: almost anything for an hour with their laughter.

Lloyd’s favorite game with youngsters was "going to the
opera.” It took three for all the parts. Each little girl would be
given a suitable name such as Mrs. Stuyvesant Fish, Mrs. Stur-
devant Webster, or perhaps Lady Augusta. If a little boy joined
the party he was called "Mr. Peabody.” The children all sat
on Lloyd’s lap. He cautioned them to be dignified as opera
was a social function of great importance. Then without warn-
ing he spread his legs and began tossing the amazed youngsters
around while he censured them: "Mrs. Fish, do sit up straight.”
"Oh, Mr. Peabody, what is the matter with you?” "Lady
Augusta, you have no idea how ridiculous you look.” Of
;; course, Lady Augusta was standing on her head by this time
' and Mr. Peabody was squealing with delight as his head
i snapped back and forth like a coffee-pot lid. Children seldom
forgot such a frolic. No wonder awkward little hands traced
out letters of sympathy when told that Uncle Lloyd had died.

The love of little children was one of the unforgettable

146

LLOYD DOWNS LEWIS, 1891-1949

characteristics of this unforgettable man. At his funeral the
silence of youngsters whose legs hung wanly from their chairs
testified that they, too, had lost a friend. In other chairs sat
Chicago’s best writers, columnists, sports editors, captains of
finance and beside them at least one journeyman printer sob-
bing to himself, "Me know Lloyd Lewis? Why I woiked for
the guy eight years.”

Above and beyond the mourners, spring winds danced
among wild flowers on the river bank and whipped the
branches overhead. Marc Connelly opened the services by say-
ing, "Lloyd was the most successful man I have ever known. He,
was at home with all mankind.” Governor Adlai Stevenson
closed the services with a tribute to Lloyd’s wisdom and wit: "I
think it will always be April in our memory of him. It will
always be a bright, fresh day, full of the infinite variety and;
the promise of new life. Perhaps nothing has gone at all —
perhaps only the embodiment of the thing — tender, precious,
to all of us — a friendship that is immortal and doesn’t pass! i
along. It will be renewed for me, much as I know it will for
all of you, each spring.”

Thus did the simple Quaker service end. In one of thej
chairs, Mike Todd, Broadway theatrical producer, said ab-
ruptly to Claudia Cassidy, "Lloyd was the closest to religion! ;
I ever got.” Yes, all the friends of Lloyd Lewis’ will have;
a hard time adjusting themselves to his passing. He seemed

young to go, but one thing is certain. He read more, remem

bered more, and lived more in his fifty-seven years than mos

human beings do in twice that time. Moreover, his jokes, hi

stories, his homely wisdom, and the majesty of his prose wi]
outlive all of us. Today and tomorrow it will hurt not to hea
his infectious laugh when busy people stop a moment to mak
merry. The hurt will be worse later as we realize that we wili
never again hear our own laughter at his bright, breezy, and
unexpected sallies.

THE BEAUBIEN CLAIM

BY CARL B. RODEN

IN the summer of 1836, Chicago, then a town of some 4,500
inhabitants, experienced its first considerable land boom,
touched off by the sale of "canal lots” from the vast tract
granted by Congress to the state of Illinois to finance the con-
struction of the Illinois and Michigan Canal. The sale was the
third of the efforts of the Canal Commissioners to raise funds,
and became the most successful under the stimulus of the well
publicized digging of the "first shovelful of earth” for the
new project on the Fourth of July. This took place at a point
on the north fork of the south branch of the Chicago River,
then far out on the prairies, but now near the intersection of
Ashland Avenue and Twenty-seventh Street, in a settlement
called Canal Port. The Chicago party, arriving there by boat
on the river, and by vehicles on the rough roads, and described
in a contemporary newspaper account as "a tour of our more
turbulent citizens” engaged in a day of oratory and feasting
to signalize the event.

Among the contributing causes to the success of the sale
was the considerable amount of loose money left in Chicago
from the great pay-off following the Treaty of 1833, when
the United Tribes of Potawatomi, Chippewas, and Ottawas
were called together to sign away their lands east of the Mis-

Carl B. Roden, librarian of the Chicago Public Library since 1918,
has been on the staff of that institution since 1886. No one, perhaps, has
a deeper affection for the site of the Beaubien Claim, nor is anyone better
qualified to tell its story.

147

148

THE BEAUBIEN CLAIM

sissippi and reluctantly move to new abodes in Iowa and
Missouri. Besides the new land grants, several hundred thou-
sand dollars in cash was distributed to the assembled Indians,
and to a surprising number of white claimants in payment i
of various and mostly dubious losses and damages. A good
portion of this easy money remained in town in the hands
of individuals prone to part with it as easily as they had come
by it.1

Harriet Martineau, that redoubtable British bluestocking,
arrived in Chicago when the boom was at its height, and in
the inevitable book she wrote about her American travels — -
her tenth in a total of thirty-six and her second about America
— she recorded with something like bated breath the scenes [
and sounds she encountered. A young lawyer of her acquaint-
ance had been taking in five hundred dollars a day for the past
five days making out land titles,2 and another friend "had
realised, in two years, ten times as much money as he had be-
fore fixed upon as a competence for life." Miss Martineau !
continues :

Others besides lawyers and speculators by trade, make a fortune in i
such extraordinary times. A poor man at Chicago had a pre-emption !
right to some land, for which he paid in the morning one hundred and j
fifty dollars. In the afternoon, he sold it to a friend of mine for five thou- |
sand dollars. A poor Frenchman, married to a squaw, had a suit pending,
when I was there, which he was likely to gain, for the right of purchas i
ing some land by the lake for one hundred dollars, which would imme
ately become worth one million dollars.

There was also, Miss Martineau observes, a pleasant social
life in the little town, and "some allowable pride in the place
about its society. . . . There is a mixture, of course. I heard of I
a family of half-breeds setting up a carriage, and wearing fine j
jewellery."3

The young lawyer who had reaped five hundred dollars

1 James R. Haydon, Chicago's True Founder, Thomas J. V. Owen (Lombard, 111., 1934), 180.

2 Alfred T . Andreas, History of Chicago (Chicago, 1884) remarks in a footnote to page 431
of volume I‘, “Mrs. Martineau was very deaf and mistook $50 for $500.”

3 Harriet Martineau, Society in America (London, 1837), I: 350-53. See also “Prairie
Tourists” on page 220 in the Illinois Scrapbook section of this issue.

CARL B. RODEN

149

a day on the side lines has been identified as either Isaac New-
j ton Arnold, afterwards Congressman and friend and biog-
i rapher of Lincoln, or, somewhat more plausibly, as Joseph
Neree Balestier4 who left Chicago for New York a few years
\ later and eventually returned to his family home near Brattle-
boro, Vermont, to become, in due course, the grandfather of
I Mrs. Rudyard Kipling.5

— j From A. T. Andreas , History of Chicago, Yol. 1, P. 266.

4 Andreas, History of Chicago, I: 431.

5 Dictionary of American Biography, Vol. I, page 550, article on “Charles Wolcott Bales-
' cier. His sister, Caroline, married Rudvard Kipling in 1892.

150

THE BEAUBIEN CLAIM

And the poor Frenchman who had a suit pending that
was to gain him a million dollars was Jean Baptiste Beaubien,
who gave his name to the Beaubien Claim, one of the more
fantastic episodes in Chicago’s history. If Miss Martineau had !
found her way to his humble home on the Fort Dearborn i
Reservation east of the town, on the west bank of the river i
as it oozed its way southward into Lake Michigan, she would
have discovered that he was also the head of the family of
half-breeds that sported a carriage and wore "fine jewellery”
and, incidentally, owned the first piano ever seen or heard in
these parts.

The Congressional land grant to the Illinois Canal Com-
missioners was made in 1827, and comprised no less than ,
384,000 acres in alternate sections five miles wide on both sides :
of the river down, or up, to its source in the prairies, and thence
southwest along the surveyed course of the canal to its junction
with the Illinois River. Section Nine, being the easternmost!
complete section in the government survey, was designated |
by the U. S. Land Office as the starting point of the grant, and i
one of the first acts of the Commissioners, after funds became i
available, was to order the platting of a town on that section.
This was done in 1830 by James Thompson, a St. Louis sur- i
veyor, who gave his town the name of the river that ran through
it. The Thompson map of 1830 thus marks the beginning of;
Chicago as a geographical locality. Section Nine embraced;
the area now bounded by Chicago Avenue and Madison Street, :
north and south, and State to Halsted streets, east and west. !
The town itself, as originally laid out, covered somewhat less
than half the section, extending only from Kinzie to Madison
Street, and westward from State Street to Desplaines. A similar !
town laid out by the same surveyor at the point where the pro-
jected canal would join the Illinois River was named Ottawa.

Beyond State Street, from Chicago Avenue to Madison!
Street, lay Fractional Section Ten, its eastern border marked;
by the meandering shores of Lake Michigan. This was still

CARL B. RODEN

151

public land, particularly that portion of it north of the river.
On the south bank, about on the present line of Michigan
Avenue, stood Fort Dearborn from 1804 to its destruction in
the Massacre of 1812. Subsequently rebuilt and at intervals
re-garrisoned, the Fort was finally evacuated in 1836 and
turned over to the federal officers in charge of harbor works.6
Several of its buildings remained standing into the 1850’s, and
one of the present writer’s forebears was fond of recalling how,
as a youngster, he had often trespassed upon that no-man’s
land in search of adventure. South of the Fort, beyond the
stockade originally enclosing it, stood a number of buildings
that were occupied, off and on, by sundry individuals — sutlers,
traders, and plain squatters, of whom the most important,
resourceful, and businesslike was Jean Baptiste Beaubien, the
poor Frenchman whose lawsuit came to Miss Martineau’s
attention.

Beaubien was born in Detroit in 1787. His family was
French-Canadian, dating back for several generations as trap-
pers and traders. He first turned up in Chicago in 1804,
[shortly after the erection of Fort Dearborn, when he began to
[make occasional trips down the Lake from his small trading
Ipost at Milwaukee. In 1812 he bought a log cabin on the
[Fort Reservation which he used as a shelter and which after-
ward figured in his legal battles as evidence of his early estab-
lishment on the disputed ground. His first wife, a full-blooded
Indian, died some time before 1812 leaving two sons who grew
to manhood in Chicago. In the latter year he married Josette
La Framboise, not exactly a squaw, as Miss Martineau de-
scribes her, but the daughter of a prosperous trader and his
Ottawa Indian wife, living some miles up the South Branch
of the river at a place called Hardscrabble.

Beaubien’ s continuous residence in the environs of the
Fort began in 1817 when he was stationed in Chicago as
subagent for a Detroit firm of traders and bought, for the

6 John Wentworth, Early Chicago. Fort Dearborn (Chicago, 1881), 35.

152

THE BEAUBIEN CLAIM

AV E AUSTIN

Chicago in Beaubien's Time and Now

Information for this composite map was taken from a number o
sources — the streets and present outline of the river are from 1925 plat:
of the City Map Department of Chicago, and the Fort Dearborn Reserva
tion and old course of the river are from surveys and maps made from 182!
to 1855 which were later corrected to include additional data. On th<
composite map are: (A) Fort Dearborn and Reservation, (B) garden fo:
Fort, (C) cultivated field belonging to Fort, (D) U. S. Factor’s Houses
(E) John Craft’s house and lot, (F) Fort cemetery, (G) Dr. Wolcott’
place, zig-zag lines indicate rail fences, (I) road to Reservation, (1) Kinzi
house, (2) wash house for Fort, (3) shop for Fort, (4) Fort Dearbon
well, (7) gate to Reservation (8) mouth of river. The composite map, b;
Robert Knight, is from Robert Knight and Lucius H. Zeuch The Location o
the Chicago Portage Route of the Seventeenth Century (Chicago Historical So
ciety, 1928), where further discussion of this subject may be found oi
pages 83 to 89.

CARL B. RODEN

153

respectable sum of $1,000, the house and spacious grounds of
one John Dean, an army contractor, situated south of the Fort.
His employers soon afterward sold out to the American Fur
Company and Beaubien entered the service of that powerful
concern as one of its Chicago agents. And when, in turn, the
; government itself succumbed to the competition of the com-
pany for the dwindling Indian trade and sold its factory build-
ings, Beaubien added the agency house to his growing posses-
sions. In or about 1823 he apparently built a house of his own,
a little to the east of these several premises and on the bank
of the river, to which he moved his family and where they lived
and prospered for the ensuing seventeen years until their so-
journ on the Reservation was finally ended by judicial decree.

Beaubien thus held such title as the sellers could convey
to a large part of all the land in the tract south of the river
and east of State Street, except that which lay within the
Fort enclosure itself. He had lived on the land continuously
since 1817. He had established a comfortable home; had set
up a school in his house, conducted for a time by his second
son, had arranged for the services of a priest, and had organ-
ized a debating society at the Fort, which was garrisoned again
from 1816 to 1823, and 1828 to 1831. The tract had not been
surveyed until 1821 and only in 1824 had it been set apart
by proclamation of the Secretary of War as a military reserva-
tion and withdrawn from public entry. Beaubien had also,
according to John Wentworth, gone to the length of subdi-
viding the land and had "sold, or given away ... a great many
lots. In this manner he was building up an active group of
backers against the day, then not very far off, when Congress
would finally enact a general pre-emption law under which
settlers on the public lands could convert their precarious
tenures into legal possession.

Meanwhile Beaubien himself apparently was counted as
i legally qualified citizen of the adjacent town of Chicago,

7 Wentworth, Early Chicago , 40.

154

THE BEAUBIEN CLAIM

although his residence was well beyond its eastern limits. In
1825 he was a justice of the peace and appears on the taxpayers’
list with an assessed valuation of $1,000. He was a voter in the
first election for governor and congressman in which the town
participated, ran unsuccessfully for town trustee in 1833, and
had been elected colonel of a state militia regiment at a hilari-
ous gathering of more or less willing recruits at the Punch I
Bowl far out on Archer Avenue, near Laughton’s Ford, where
it was said, the vote for him was unanimous because his jovial
disposition and good fellowship promised ample relaxation
from the rigors of military discipline. But when duty called, as
in the Indian scares preceding the Black Hawk War, he proved
himself a good soldier and competent commander who well
merited the rank of brigadier general afterward conferred !
upon him.

The rights and wrongs of the pioneers, who were pushing
westward to settle on the public lands, agitated the federal
government almost continuously from the first session of Con-
gress to the close of the 1830’s. The doctrine that a short period
of occupancy could vest the settler with the right of permanent
possession soon made its appearance, and as early as 1791 reso-
lutions seeking to confirm such rights in separate localities
were being introduced and forced through Congress. But the
adoption of a fixed policy made its way very slowly and against i
much opposition from the government, burdened by the young
nation’s great need of revenue which, it was hoped, could be
raised by the sale of large tracts of the western domain to or-
ganized groups and land companies able to make such pur-j
chases for cash or upon well established credit. Dealing with
individuals and enabling them to acquire their tenements by 1
private sale without competition and on long and precarious)
terms was opposed both by the hard-pressed officials and, for
a time, by Congress itself, and it was not until 1830 that a gen-
eral pre-emption law was adopted to appease the rising clamor
from beyond the Alleghenies, granting pre-emption rights to

CARL B. RODEN

155

every settler or occupant of the public lands prior to the
sassage of this act.” The act of 1830 was definitely limited
:o one year, and was bitterly fought by Henry Clay, among
Dthers, who called the settlers "a lawless horde,” and who, in
general, represented the southern viewpoint which saw in pre-
emption a danger to the development of large plantations.
The act was renewed for another year in 1832 and again in
1834, but it was not until 1841 that the passage of Thomas H.
Benton’s permanent pre-emption law established the doctrine
in the national jurisprudence.8

In 1831 Robert A. Kinzie, son of the pioneer Kinzie, ob-
tained possession by pre-emption of the northern portion of
Fractional Section Ten, extending from the river to Chicago
Avenue and comprising 102 acres. In the same year Jean Bap-
tiste Beaubien, perhaps stirred to action by Kinzie’s success,
filed his first application at the nearest land office, then at
Palestine, Crawford County, Illinois, for a patent to the South-
west Quarter, being all the land in Fractional Section Ten lying
south of the river to Madison Street, and accompanied his
application by the tender of the sum of $94.61 as payment in
full for the 75.69 acres included in the tract, at $1.25 per acre.
His application was rejected, on the ground that the tract was
a military reservation, as indeed it was, though only since 1824
— seven years after Beaubien had begun his residence thereon.
His second application, filed at Danville, Illinois, was simi-
larly rejected, on the same grounds. Meanwhile, in 1835, a new
land office had been opened in Chicago. It was soon to become
a busy spot in the canal lot sales of 1836, and there Beaubien
filed his third application on May 28, 1835, which this time
was accepted and forwarded to Washington with the receiver’s
'certification that the applicant was eligible for a patent.

In Washington the application met with the customary
procrastinations of government routine, and, when more than
a year had elapsed without results, Beaubien and his backers

8 Benjamin H. Hibbard, History of the Public Land Policies (New York, 1939), chap. IX.

156

THE BEAUBIEN CLAIM

committed a fateful error and began legal proceedings in the
form of a suit for ejectment against Major De Lafayette Wil-
cox, commandant at the Fort, and the nearest visible repre-
sentative of the government. When the news of this action
reached Washington, the General Land Office was moved to
take notice, with the result that the U. S. District Attorney
at Chicago was instructed to enter an appearance in the suit. ;
Thus the issue was joined and the battle commenced, to be
ended only when, three years later, the U. S. Supreme Court
conclusively disposed of Beaubien and his aspirations. The
district attorney was D. J. Baker, the same who had advised
the Chicago Land Office that Beaubien was legally entitled to j
a patent. It was also related, though more as fable than fact, ;
that President Jackson had Beaubien’s patent before him, all
ready for his signature, when he heard the news from Chicago j
and tore up the document with a volley of characteristically
explosive comment.

The legal proceedings were filed in the Illinois Circuit
Court in Chicago at the October term, 1836, the presiding,
judge being the able and upright Thomas Ford, later governor j
of Illinois. In form it was an agreed case and was entitled ;:
John Jackson ex dem. Murray McConnell vs. De Lafayette:
Wilcox. McConnell was a downstate lawyer to whom Beau-
bien, perhaps for the purposes of the litigation, had leased or
granted possession of a large portion of the tract in question.
John Jackson was a sub-grantee of McConnell. McConnell
himself appeared as one of the attorneys for the plaintiff, and
it is said that the eminent Sidney Breese was also among coun-
sel for the Beaubien group.

John Wentworth, able and tireless chronicler of Chicago’s
early history, of much of which he was a part, describes Judge
Ford’s decision as "just as favorable to the plaintiff as it could
possibly be whilst deciding against him,” declaring in sub-
stance that, while Beaubien’s claim was prima facie valid, his
title was incomplete without the government patent, the issue

CARL B. RODEN

157

of which the court had not the power to decree. The plaintiffs
) thereupon appealed to the Illinois Supreme Court which re-
versed Judge Ford’s benevolent but inconclusive decision and
leaned even farther in Beaubien’s direction by ruling that he
did in fact hold a valid title, as all land within the state was
« subject to the laws of the state and that he had complied with
i such laws. The court also held that the so-called Fort Dearborn
Reservation had never been a legal reservation since this could
\ be accomplished only through express legislation which had
never been obtained; that the assent of the state legislature was
necessary to establish military reservations and maintain garri-
| sons within state boundaries, and sundry further judicial syllo-
gisms of a like tenuous nature.9 The Court’s opinion was writ-
ten by Justice Theophilus W. Smith of whom Wentworth
sententiously observes, "he was a warm personal friend of
General Beaubien, and his learned opinion was the work of
both heart and head.’’10

But the U. S. Supreme Court, to which the suit was trans-
! ferred on writ of error, summarily rejected the Illinois court’s
line of states’ rights arguments and affirmed the government’s
contention that the land under and around Fort Dearborn was
a military reservation, having been duly proclaimed as such
and withdrawn from entry in 1824; that Beaubien’s several
applications for a patent had been properly refused, and that
his occupancy — which dated back at least seven years before
1824 — conferred no rights upon him in the eyes of the law.* 11
As evidence of the importance that the controversy had as-
sumed, it is of interest to note that the United States was repre-
sented in the Supreme Court hearing by Felix Grundy, U. S.
Attorney General, and by his immediate predecessor, Benja-
min F. Butler, whose brother, Charles Butler, was then in
Chicago engaged in extensive real-estate operations, both for
himself and as representative of several eastern investors bent

9 McConnell v. Wilcox, 2 111. 344.

10 Wentworth, Early Chicago, 39.

11 Wilcox v. Jackfon, 13 Peters (U. S.) 498.

158

THE BEAUBIEN CLAIM

upon making fortunes — as Butler himself did — in the booming
land market.12 Of counsel for the Beaubiein group was Daniel
Webster (whose son, Fletcher, practiced law in Chicago for
a few months in 1836) , and "Mr. Key”13 who in all probability j
was none other than Francis Scott Key, author of "The Star i
Spangled Banner,” and at that time a prominent Washington
attorney with a large federal practice.

The final act in the litigation was the decree of the U. S.
District Court at Chicago directing the return to Beaubien
of the $94.61 he had deposited with his application, and the ;
surrender by him of the certificate issued by the Chicago Land
Office. This was done on December 18, 1840. And so, at long
last, Miss Martineau’s poor Frenchman failed to gain his suit.

The progress of the case was followed in Chicago with
eager interest and the Supreme Court decision was received
with a mixture of gloom and indignation which boiled over 1
into public protests and indignation meetings when the gov-:
ernment with great promptness — characterized by some as
indecent haste14 — proceeded to force the matter to a conclu-
sion by dispatching the Solicitor of the General Land Office,
Matthew Birchard, to Chicago with instructions to survey the
land and offer it for sale at public auction as the Fort Dearborn1
Addition to Chicago. Beaubien’s friends and the claimants
under his grants, supported by a considerable body of public
sentiment, launched a campaign to prevail upon prospective
purchasers to refrain from bidding against the holders of such!
grants, and, in particular, to suffer the Colonel himself to keep*
the modest tract on which he had for these many years made!
his home, and for which he was prepared to pay only a modest
price. That these efforts to discourage bidders did not succeed!
is shown by the fact that the sale proceeded as advertised,
although the land office found it expedient to withdraw its

12 Dictionary of American Biography, Vol. Ill, page 359, article on “Charles Butler.’’

13 Wilcox v. Jackson, 13 Peters (U. S.) 498.

14 See editorials and news comments in the Chicago Democrat and the Chicago American,
June, 1839.

The Beaubien Claim as Laid Out in City Lots

From the abstract of title compiled by Handy, Simmons & Co., 1874

159

160

THE BEAUBIEN CLAIM

notice of a public sale and to substitute therefor an invitation j
to submit sealed bids.

The sale occupied two weeks, from June 10 to 24, 1839, ■
and within that period all of the Fort Dearborn Addition, a
total of 253 lots on what is now Wabash and Michigan ave- :
nues from the river to Madison Street, was sold for an aggre-
gate of $106,042.16. The purchasers were mostly Chicagoans, s
with a few exceptions — notably Arthur Bronson, a New York
capitalist, who picked up a baker’s dozen of choice lots in
Block A facing the river on the present Wacker Drive north
of South Water Street, for prices from $233 to $583 per lot
of twenty-four feet. As a whole, prices ran all the way from
$2,657 for a seventy-nine foot corner in Block 2, to $200 and
less for the narrower frontage farther south, the river lots j
being at the top of the scale.15 A small section on Michigan
Avenue at the river was retained by the government for a light-
house and harbor master’s quarters. Likewise reserved was the
block on Michigan Avenue from Randolph to Washington
Street, which, as a gesture of popular appeasement, was dedi- j.
cated as a public park, called Dearborn Park, with the legend |
inscribed on the original plat: ' 'Public ground, forever to
remain vacant of buildings.” This dedication was vacated in
1890 with the consent of the abutting property owners for the
benefit of the Chicago Public Library which now occupies
the site. But the land east of Dearborn Park is still protected
by the same dedication, to which Chicago is indebted for the
splendid parkway that constitutes one of the chief glories of
Michigan Avenue.16

The "indecent haste” with which the Fort Dearborn Addi-
tion was opened for sale not only displeased the populace but
had the further and more serious effect of dumping several

15 For a schedule of the lots with names of purchasers and prices paid, see Fergus’ Di-
rectory of the City of Chicago , 1839. (Reprinted, 1876, in Fergus' Historical Series, pt. 2, pages
47-49.)

16 These pioneer real-estate transactions, including the essential facts of the Beaubien
Claim, are embodied in the title records of all property in that valuable section of downtown
Chicago and are well known to many lawyers and realty dealers.

CARL B. RODEN

161

lundred parcels of land on an already weakened market, just
Deginning to recover from the Panic of 1837, and never again
:o reach the peak of 1836. The total proceeds that the sale
Drought were disappointingly low— not much more than a
:enth of the figure that might have been realized in the boom
days when, according to Miss Martineau, her poor Frenchman
vas counting on gaining a million dollars from his investment
n "some land by the lake” — and might well have come close
o that round sum.17 But the Colonel himself and his friends
vere even more violently displeased when they learned that
:he very corner of earth upon which he had built his home was
ibout to be sold to a Chicago lawyer, James H. Collins by name,
vho had pointedly made a bid high enough to ensure its
icceptance. Collins was a man of prominence and ability. He
dad been one of the government attorneys in the Beaubien case,
md was no doubt wholly convinced of the invalidity of the
Beaubien Claim.

The popular movement to enable the claimants to bid in
heir holdings without competition met with his stern and
•ighteous disapproval, and, with characteristic belligerency
tnd a well-known propensity for taking the unpopular side,
^ollins proceeded, in defiance of public clamor and threats
)f personal violence, to become the first legal owner of five of
he six lots that comprised the Beaubien homesite, leaving the
Lionel with only a single lot which he bought for $225 and
oon sold again. These lots comprised the major portion of
31ock 5, beginning with Lot 11 at what is now the northeast
orner of Michigan Avenue and South Water Street, which
leaubien was allowed to keep, and continuing north' to and
■ deluding Lot 6. This, therefore, seems to have been the true
ocation of the last and most substantial of the Beaubien homes,
nd not, as is often stated, the "foot of Randolph Street,” which
vas the site of the Dean house used as a dwelling up to 1823
nd thereafter as a school, store, and warehouse until it was
vashed away by the waves.

17 Homer Hoyt, One Hundred Years of Land Values in Chicago (Chicago, 1933), 39.

162

THE BEAUBIEN CLAIM

The lots had a uniform frontage of 48 feet but varied in
depth from 132 to 232 feet, their eastern boundary being deter-
mined by the shore of the lake upon which they verged. The
latter fact provided their new owner, the embattled Lawyei
Collins, with a fresh cause for conflict some years later, when
he sued for an injunction against the Illinois Central Railroad
then building northward on trestles over the water, on the
ground that this construction trespassed upon his ripariari
rights. While defeated in his suit, Collins thus became the firs
of many Chicagoans to engage in legal contests with that enter
prising railroad.18

The time had now come for Beaubien to bow to the del
crees of law and circumstance and, early in 1840, he removec
his household to his farm on the Des Plaines River, not fa*
from the two-section reserve granted to his friend, the Pota
watomi Chief Alexander Robinson, whose family graveyard
still remains at the Lawrence Avenue crossing of the rivei
Beaubien was then fifty-three years old. His family consisted
of the two sons of his first wife, long dead, and of Josette’
eleven children, all born on the Reservation. His affairs wer
in prosperous condition, for besides the claim he had left be
hind him, he was the owner of various pieces of real estatj
in and about Chicago. As early as 1834, he had donated tw;
lots in Section 15, at the southwest corner of Wabash Avenu
and Madison Street to St. Mary’s Catholic Church. This vali
able corner is, incidentally, still the property of the Archdicj
cese. On the other hand, he had met with at least one serioi
loss, resulting from a promissory note he had rashly given t
one of his attorneys in the claim litigation as a contingent fe
which the latter had promptly discounted and released for co
lection. This caused the Colonel considerable hardship, froi
which he never fully recovered.19

Meanwhile the Beaubien Claim was still a live issue j

18 Andreas, History of Chicago, I: 451.

19 Edwin O. Gale, Reminiscences of Early Chicago (Chicago, 1902), 130.

CARL B. RODEN

163

the courts of public opinion and particularly in the hearts and
minds of the claimant’s grantees, not one of whom had suc-
ceeded in retaining his holdings in recent lot sales. Efforts
were made from time to time to reinstate the claim through
special legislation and the Colonel himself was occasionally
Encountered in Washington on lobbying errands. In 1854 this
group and the town as a whole received a thrill when it was
announced that John Wentworth, then in Congress and always
la Beaubien partisan, had secured the passage of a bill granting
to the latter a patent for the area at the foot of Michigan Ave-
nue hitherto reserved and occupied by the lighthouse, federal
harbor works, and what was left of the Fort, and now about
to be cleared and released. This area was (and still is) one of
the choicest and most valuable locations in the subdivision,
comprising Lots 1 to 6 in Block 4, the present site of the Lon-
don Guaranty Building, all but the south ten feet of Lot 1 in
Block 5, across Michigan Avenue to the east, and Lots 8 and 9
in Block 2 on Wacker Drive less a portion excavated for the
widening of the river and the construction of the first Rush
Street Bridge. The act of Congress was generally accepted as
an act of grace inspired by a guilty conscience. It was even
hoped that further manifestations of official contrition, to like
effect, might follow, but such hopes proved vain. The Colonel
remained its sole beneficiary, and Wentworth, in his account
of the episode adds, "there was not a citizen of Chicago who
knew him who ever questioned its propriety, to my knowl-
edge.”

The most ambitious, and the final attempt to revise the
claim was undertaken by a Chicago lawyer, William H. Stand-
ish, in 1878. Standish presented a voluminous argument based
:on a bill in the 45th Congress (Senate Bill 773) granting pre-
emption to the Beaubien heirs of the whole tract covered by
-the Fort Dearborn Addition, and at the same time proposing
to vest title in the city of Chicago to all remaining public lands
in Fractional Sections 10 and 15 (which lay south of Madison

CARL B. RODEN

165

Street) . These lands comprised the area east of Michigan Ave-
nue which had been dedicated for park purposes, and the title
to which was assumed to be still in the United States. This proj-
ect was one of the early phases of the famous and protracted
Lake Front Case, into which we do not propose to enter ex-
cept to refer to the celebrated decision of Justices Harlan and
Blodgett in the U. S. Circuit Court in 1888 which ended the
Lake Front litigation forever by declaring that title to all open
ground dedicated to public use, even including the streets,
in the section, was not in the United States but in the city of
Chicago as a public agency for the state of Illinois. Senate
Bill 773, meanwhile, had been referred to the Senate Commit-
tee on Private Land Claims of the 45th Congress, which, after
reviewing the whole story once again, reported adversely on
the bill and recommended that it be indefinitely postponed.
The Beaubien Claim was, therefore, on all counts and from all
angles, a closed issue.

What Beaubien did with his Congressional windfall is
not known, though the record could probably be found. Pre-
sumably be sold his nine lots, which by 1854 had acquired a
respectable market value, and thus eased his financial situation,
grown none too bright with the passing years. At any rate,
he did not move back to the Reservation but continued to live
on his Des Plaines River farm, where Josette had died in 1845.
In 1855 he returned to Chicago and lived on the West Side
Side with his third wife, Catherine Louise Pinney, whose four
children increased his flock to seventeen. In 1861 he moved
again, to Naperville, where he died on January 26, 1863, well
over seventy-five years of age.

The Beaubien family has left few palpable traces of its
progress through the succeeding generations. In visible ves-
:iges the name survives only on a bronze tablet marking (in-
correctly) the site of his homestead, and in Beaubien Court,
i short and narrow thoroughfare east of Michigan Avenue
from South Water Street to Randolph Street, giving access to

166

THE BEAUBIEN CLAIM

the Illinois Central freight houses. In Jean Baptiste’s own day
his younger brother, Mark, achieved resounding fame and
popularity as the jovial host of the Sauganash Tavern and per-
former on the fiddle always available for festive occasions.

Of the Colonel’s numerous progeny there is record only
of one of his two half-breed sons, Madore, who after a business
career in Chicago, chose to revert to his tribal status because,
as he told John Wentworth, he would "rather be a big Indian;
than a little white man.” When our industrious annalist, Henry ;
H. Hurlbut, published his Chicago Antiquities in 1881, there
were still a number of Beaubiens in Chicago. "Various mem-
bers of the family,” says the discursive Hurlbut, "accept the
dignity conferred by industrial occupation. Within the decade
past, some of the sons, and perhaps grandsons, have worn a!
glittering star upon their breasts; not the mere gilded or dia-
mond bauble of some meaningless order . . . but the bright
symbol of useful and honorable employment.”20 Today there;
are six Beaubiens in the male line listed in the Chicago
telephone directory, all of whom, no doubt, can trace their
descent from the two brothers who first brought the name to;
Chicago — through Jean Baptiste’s seventeen children and
Mark’s twenty-three.

20 Henry H. Hurlbut, Chicago Antiquities (Chicago, 1881), 329.

THE IMPORTANCE OF BOOKS

BY PEARL S. BUCK

C T 7 E know that, taken by and large among literate peoples,
W Americans are not great readers. A writer knows that
f half a million of his books are read here in the United States
le has achieved more than a seven-days’ wonder. Most books
ell under Eve thousand copies. All books sell under twenty
housand copies except the few best sellers. Only the biggest
)est sellers, usually historical romances, sell a hundred thou-
sand copies. Multiplying all these figures by five or even by
en, to allow for libraries and lending among friends, we still
lave only a small fraction, indeed, of the one hundred and
, hirty millions of our people. We are constrained then to see
hat our people are for the most part nonreaders. They get their
eading, if any, from the comics, from newspaper headlines,
ind popular magazines. Beyond that they listen to the radio
md go to the movies.

The plain fact is that, except for a small percentage of
)ur people, books are not necessities. They are luxuries and
able decorations. Publishers know this well, and have to
•eckon on it. In times of high prices books and diamonds show
he first falling off.

Pearl S. Buck, well-known author and -president of the East and
West Association , hardly needs an introduction to our readers. This
paper was presented before the Atlantic City Conference of the American
Library Association on June 14, 1948. It was published in the Septem-
ber 1, 1948 A. L. A. Bulletin of the American Library Association from
which permission to reprint here has been obtained.

167

168

THE IMPORTANCE OF BOOKS

It may be said to comfort ourselves that the most intelli-
gent among our people, the leaders, are readers of books. Un-
fortunately this, too, is not true. Some leaders do read, if they
have been taught to read sufficiently well so that reading is no
effort and they can pass easily from the world of sound into
the world of silent perception. But . . . more often than not the
local leaders are not readers. They are usually what are called
men of action. How often even our schools are controlled by
local boards composed of men who seldom take up a book
and who do not see the need of more and better books!

I doubt whether our congressmen are readers of books —
many of them. Perhaps even our cabinet members and even
our President are not and have not been readers of books. It
is terrifying to think that the policies of our country, in these:
dangerous and unstable times, are being made by men who
have not perhaps ever read, say, a history of Russia or of China,:
and have no conception of England’s history of empire, except
as subordinates brief them before conferences. Yet in a literate
democracy, where reading is required of every normal-minded
citizen, books ought to be as necessary as bread. We cannot
understand the present or approach the future with any sort of
common sense unless we have that material in our minds which
can only be got from books. Locked away in books are not only
all the facts which the human mind has yet brought togethef
and comprehended, but in books alone are to be found thd
creative thinking of the finest human minds. I use the word
locked with meaning, for reading is the key. . . .

In our strange times, when militarists and political aspir
ants and greedy men are struggling to divide our world intc;
many parts, the world remains one. More and more is this evi
dent. The chief reason why the plots and plans of dictator:
succeed is because the people remain ignorant and the reasor
people are ignorant is because they do not read books. . . .

You may ask, what sort of books ? I submit that ... no mar
or woman should be the judge of books for people as a whole

PEARL S. BUCK

169

... No one should say this book is good and that one is bad
•for all. It is dangerous in a democracy for any group to set
itself to tell people what they should read. Churches should
not do it and government should not do it. Such censorship
is the first step toward book-burning and book-burning
throughout history has been the sign of the dictator.

Centuries ago, China’s greatest dictator, Chin Shih Huang,
determined to burn all books in order to stifle people’s minds
so that he could better control the nation. Books, he declared,
taught people to think dangerous thoughts and then to rebel
lagainst authority. So they do, and that is the glory of books.
Hitler in Germany announced his dictatorship by banning
books and then by burning them. The banning of books always
comes first. There are steps to this process of banning. The first
step is to make out a list of books which organizations or gov-
ernments recommend, not for authenticity or amusement or
any of the proper uses of books. No, they recommend books
because these books express the rules of the organization —
members should read them.

Next comes the suppression of certain books. Then comes
the actual destruction of books, and tyranny is in the seat of
power. Censorship of books means censorship of the mind,
and censorship of the mind is what every tyrant wants, wher-
ever he is to be found, and he can be found in any country.
Sometimes he wears the robe of a minister of religion, some-
times he wears a business suit, or a soldier’s uniform, some-
times he is a government bureaucrat or high official. . . . [We]
must watch for him wherever he is, and the censorship of books
is the sign of his presence. The freedom of people everywhere
in the world is closely linked with freedom from censorship of
books. . . .

What are good books? For me they are the books I enjoy,
and so are they for you the books you enjoy. I believe that there
should be all kinds of books and there should be no censorship
of books at all. The people themselves should choose the books

170

THE IMPORTANCE OE BOOKS

they enjoy. I believe that every sort of book should be allowed
and the education of choice should begin early through the
development of character so that people themselves will make
the choice of what are good books. It is too late when people
begin to come and get books for themselves. Their ways are
set. If they are dirty-minded they will want dirty books, and
someone telling them that the dirty book is banned does no
good. They will go and be dirty in other ways. People who
love violence and murder cannot be checked by refusing to
allow them to have books about violence and murder. They
will get their satisfaction in some other place.

Not through books must the controls come upon the indi-
vidual. I must emphasize the dangers of allowing books to be
used as the tools of discipline for any reason whatsoever. To
allow this means that the next step will be pressure put upon
writers not to write, that dangerous pressure which today is
stifling literature and music and art in Soviet Russia, and
which, whenever it has occurred in history, has meant the be- 1
ginning of a dark age not only for the arts, but for the people.
For the arts, and chief among them literature, are the fields
of freedom not only for those who create, but for those who!
participate in creation by receiving and enjoying — or rejecting!
— what is created.

Books then should be freely published and freely read.

I stress this point because we do have certain incipient censor-;:
ships in this country. They have not proceeded far, but there!
are signs that some groups are urging their further develop-,
ment. The churches exercise a certain sort of censorship. Onelt
local city has a morality board and other cities think theyl
should have them. Women’s groups, notoriously conservative!
as nearly all of them are, are looking toward more rather than!
less censorship. Certain industries, both capital and labor, have
censorships of their own. . . . The trend in our country is not
toward more freedom for the people but less, and freedom!
for books is the essence of freedom for the people.

PEARL S. BUCK

171

But censorship is still not powerful in our country. Our
people do not read, not because they are forbidden to read,
: most of them, but because they do not want to read. . . .

Too many of our people don’t know how to read. They
■can read something they must read, but they don’t know how
to read well enough for pleasure. Every teacher will tell you
'that teaching children to read is the basic difficulty in educa-
tion. Many a pupil with a good enough mind fails because
literally he doesn’t read well enough to get his mind educated.
He cannot understand processes because he cannot read them
[with ease. You would be surprised at the number of people
who turn away from a book which they would enjoy because
it looks hard to read. I am not speaking of technical books
[alone — I am speaking of books of thought and fancy. Yet read-
ing is basic to democracy. You can’t have a true and working
democracy unless people keep themselves informed, and the
only way to be informed is to read. When the majority of
people cannot read well enough to keep themselves informed,
: then the democracy is in danger.

And if people don’t read, if they consider themselves too
i busy to read, it means that they can’t read easily enough to
enjoy reading.

How dangerously this inability to read is linked up with
j censorship! For a nonreading people will be careless about
book bans and book control, when they do not consider books
: essential to them. A nonreading public is the very material for
book censorship. Only the leaders of thought, only the real
: readers, and the writers, will be affected by censorship, but this
means stifling at the source. If people valued books, it would
: be impossible to maintain censorships. No one, no govern-
ment, can control an informed people. But when people are
: too ignorant to know what is happening to them, then it is
: easy to put out the lamps one by one. The people will not per-
: ceive the increasing darkness. . . .

Our whole system of teaching people how to read needs

172

THE IMPORTANCE OF BOOKS

new study and revision. We are graduating far too many chil-
dren from the grades who cannot read, and if people do not
learn to read in the grades they will never learn. They will go
through life book blind. And because they are book blind they
will never understand what is going on around them in the
world and why it is going on and what may be expected as a
result of what is going on. They will be forever at the mercy;
of demagogues and politicians of all sorts. They will be at the
mercy of "They say" and "I heard." They will never know for
themselves. The chief reason for the enormous popularity of
forums and programs and lectures in this country is because
our people don’t read and so they go anywhere they can to hear.
If our democracy is ever wrecked it will be because our people
never really learned to read and find out things for them-:
selves. Somewhere as children they were blocked by the diffi-j
culty of the printed word.

After watching a good many children struggle with:
school, I have come to the conclusion that one reason for thisj
seeming difficulty in reading is that the school presents too;
early far too many subjects. I should like to see the first years
of school devoted, other than physical activity, only to reading!
books. I should like to see complete mastery of reading, so that!
the child reads as easily and instinctively as he breathes, before
any other requirement is put upon him. I should like him to
feel that reading is the door to all sorts of interesting knowl-tj
edge and enjoyment, that in reading books he can find endless
pleasure, that books are printed by the million on every sub-
ject and that all he has to do is to pick up a book to find out
what he wants.

Then and only then, when reading has become an instinc-j
tive function, would I give him arithmetic and geography and
history as subjects in themselves. What the child has to con-j
front today is all these subjects, each one a mountain, and he
has to start climbing them while reading itself is still a subject I
and not an instinct. Consequently he associates the act of read !

PEARL S. BUCK

173

ing with all these other difficulties and he lumps them together
as trials and without joy. By the time he finishes school he never
'wants to look at a book again and nine times out of ten he
doesn’t. . . .

We are living in a dangerous era. We are not at all sure
:of maintaining even our own democracy, not to mention the
'possibility of democracy on a world-wide scale. Most countries
in the world are not democracies. Most people are not free. I
repeat: the trend is not at all toward more freedom — it is
toward less freedom for the common folk. I warn you of this.

Meanwhile — there has always to be a meanwhile, since
'systems cannot change over night — I should like to see reading
classes in all libraries. ... I think the teaching of reading ought
to be a part of every library’s responsibility. I should like to
see reading teachers, people who do nothing but teach reading
to children and to adults, hold hours — not classes, for class has
become a hateful word to our school-hating people. Hours,
let us call them! Adults need help in reading, too. Many of
them read painfully, word by word, each word a thing to be
said separately in the mind. But reading, as anyone knows who
has made reading an instinct, is not done word by word. It is
not done even line by line or paragraph by paragraph or page
! by page — it is done idea by idea.

When we listen to someone talk we don’t separate each
word from the other — we hear by meanings, we leap from idea
to idea. So it should be with the printed word as with the heard
word. Adults can be given help to accomplish this, and the
very thought that they are learning how to read over again more
quickly and thoroughly at the same time — for slow readers
lose the idea in word-to-word effort — will inspire them to be-
come readers of books. For then they will enjoy books.

Sound education is always the result of enjoyment. We
don’t begin to be educated or to educate ourselves, until we
begin to enjoy the process and the result.

I have tried to make clear . . . the relation between reading

174

THE IMPORTANCE OF BOOKS

and books and between books and democracy. I should like to
proceed to the place of books in our world. ... We are now
beginning ... a new era. Those of you who are readers of
history and who are aware of our times know this already. All
human history is divided into eras. Looking back through the
centuries, one can see, through books, that human life has
proceeded in great waves, washing back sometimes but even
then seeming to gather energy for the next great push onward.
We are just now in such a wash-back. Since the end of the last:
war there seems to be retrogression everywhere. None of the
great dreams have come true. In every country the people are
less well off than they were before. Here in the United States
while we are not worse off materially, yet all honest men and
women must be, I think, uneasily conscious that spiritually we
are at a very low ebb indeed. No great voices speak. Govern-
ment is weak and often unwise, and from the churches and
great organizations of the people nothing comes.

In every other country that I know anything about the
people are certainly as low. And yet, if you have your ear sharp
to hear, you may perceive that in the very restlessness and dis- j
content of the people there is hope. People everywhere feel
the necessity for something better in life than we have now.
None is secure. Especially our own people, rich in the midst
of many poor, are not secure.

But I should be unwise if I let the impression be left that
all our people wish for the same world. Uneasiness is dividing
our people in two ways. Some are looking toward a world
community in which mutual benefit will make mutual security,
a really democratic world. Others, and among these are many
young men, are intoxicated with the thought of power. The
influences of fascism have been deeper than many of us realize,:
especially upon the ignorant and the inhumane. Many young
people are inhumane until they learn through experience what
it is to suffer. War was therefore the worst possible thing that
could have befallen such persons. They have become what is

PEARL S. BUCK

175

called "trigger-happy.” Today the knowledge that a man can
be powerful without being strong or wise or courageous is a
frightful truth. Anybody with a better weapon than the next
man can be powerful.

Today, more than ever before in human history, all people
are in danger from these individuals who are trigger-happy.
They swagger about in every country. When I was writing my
book about how fascism rose in Germany, I asked my friend
Erna von Pustau, who was working with me, what seemed to
her the most dangerous aspect of American life. She thought
for a long time and then she said, "I remember that a diary was
found on the person of a dead German soldier, and in this diary
he told of the hope of having the atomic bomb, and he said,
'Yet I wonder whether, with this terrible bomb in my hand,
can I drop it. Will not my hand shake? Shall I have the heart
to drop the bomb?’ But,” she continued, "when the young
American who dropped the bomb on Hiroshima was asked
how he felt, he answered, 'I didn’t feel anything. I was just
doing a job.’ A job which killed a hundred thousand innocent
people — yes, innocent, for they had been completely misled.”

It is this "I didn’t feel anything” which terrifies me, too.
For this "I don’t feel anything” means an ignorant mind and
an uneducated heart, and such minds and hearts are just the
stuff for tyrants to use. We must not think of modern tyranny
in the old terms of kings. Tyranny can be capital, or labor, or
church, or government, or the combinations which took place
in Germany — anything that takes away freedom for people.
As Justice William Douglas says, freedom for people is that
which gives a man complete freedom to go into any theater
and see any show and take part in it, but which does not give
him the freedom to call out the word, "Ere.”

Those who are wiser and who understand the world as a
community must be on guard against the power-lovers. Yet the
first essential to making this world community a reality is the
heart which can feel community with other human beings and

176

THE IMPORTANCE OF BOOKS

the mind which wills to learn about them. World understand-
ing — I fear to speak the words! We use up words so easily. We ;
talk about something so much that the very name is exhausted
before we have grasped the substance or achieved the reality.
Democracy is such a word — we have talked it to death without
finding out all it means. In some parts of the world today,
where our American armies control the people, the very word
"democracy” has become a curse and a cause of hatred. We :
have killed the word for the people there before they ever knew
what it meant. So it is to some extent even in our country. We
are tired of the sound of the word.

Thus I am afraid of the words, "world understanding.”

I treasure them so much, they are so important. What we need
above all else, we Americans, is world understanding. But now,
alas, we are beginning to talk about world understanding.
Forums are being built and programs are being planned on it,
and in the coming season after the summer, I fear that many of i
you will see in your towns and cities meetings on world under-
standing which have nothing at all to do with world under- i
standing and which will accomplish none of it. I beg you ...
to watch for such meetings and programs and by every means |
you have to make the people in your communities realize
that to talk about world understanding does not mean to have
world understanding. To have world understanding we must
understand with humility the peoples of the earth, what
they are and why they are what they are. Organizations are not
the way to understand the world. You can understand the
world only by first having in yourself the attitude for under-
standing. This attitude is one of simple humanity. An Ameri-
can is no better and no worse than a citizen of any other land.
We are only people. In science we have progressed further than
any country except Germany, but in other ways we are back-
ward. In world feeling we are behind the peoples of the East.
Our culture is only average. I say these things because only
when we are humble enough to see ourselves as one among the

PEARL S. BUCK

177

< world’s peoples and not above them all can we really begin to

■ understand the world. We need to get a perspective on our-
I selves.

You may ask, is not this feeling of superiority inherent
in our people just nationalism, perhaps? No, I think not. It
I is rather, perhaps, a sign of youth and inexperience. The older
I peoples of Asia certainly have a sense of world community,
[of the commonness of life, which we do not. This is, perhaps,
} because the religions of the East are based on human likeness.
I The Chinese instinctively says, "All under Heaven are one fam-
. ily.” We have never thought of saying such a thing because we
do not believe it. Of course we are one world family whether
I we believe it or not, and we shall never have peace and security
i upon this small earth until we realize that we must have this
I family feeling toward all people. We don’t have to love every-
i body with a personal love, because that is impossible, but we
i have to rise to the place of wanting to see everybody have an
i equal chance for food and health and education and opportu-
nity, and not feel that we should have special privilege, before

■ we can even begin to have world understanding. We have to
; educate ourselves somehow in common humanity.

Now, fortunately for us, our people are interested in
human things. In spite of some of the trigger-happy among us,
most of us enjoy people, and I have discovered in my work
{through the East and West Association that we are quick to
- respond to good and interesting human beings. This means
| that if we can get people to reading books, we can get them to
understanding that other peoples are as human as we are and
want the same kind of a world. . . .

What sort of books will people need to read? Well, first
pf all, history. For example, we cannot understand why the
Russians are what they are or what they seem to us to be, with-
out knowing Russian history. But this is true of all peoples.
We are incomprehensible, too, to other peoples. In fact, I know

178

THE IMPORTANCE OF BOOKS

that we are considered the most incomprehensible people on
earth, after Soviet Russia.

Next, I think we should persuade and cajole people into
reading books about other peoples, anything which makes
those peoples seem human and real. The sense of common
humanity is what we Americans need. We are generous, we
give relief easily, but we are not a very humane people, even
taking out our trigger-happies. I think that science tends to
make people dehumanized and the speed of life tends to de-
humanize us, and competition dehumanizes. The very funda-
mentals of our life, the things which have made us rich and
strong and prosperous, also dehumanize us. We have to coun-
terbalance this effect of our general life by special efforts to
restore the balance of humanity to our hearts and souls if we
are to be able to grasp the reality of world understanding. And,
as I said, next to people themselves, books which describe what |
peoples are, will help us. . . .

The two questions which face us are: How can we

teach people to read books ? How can we persuade them to read i
books ? For our most precious human treasure, the story of all
history and all imagination, lies between the covers of books, :
and no generation should grow to physical maturity without :i
sharing this treasure.

LINCOLN IN KANSAS

BY CHARLES ARTHUR HAWLEY

ABRAHAM LINCOLN began his campaign for the Presi-
dency in Kansas in December, 1859, a fact which was
I almost entirely overlooked by his biographers, and of which
little has been generally known until recently. The facts of
l this important trip have been handed down by word of mouth
I with the exception of a brief mention by Nicolay and Hay in
I their Complete Works of Abraham Lincoln, a few newspaper
notices, and the notes made at the time by that indefatigable
I scholar and newspaperman, Daniel W. Wilder. Wilder, a
r graduate of Harvard in the class of 1856, came to Kansas the
I next year as editor of the Elwood (Kansas) Free Press. He was
I one of the founders of the Republican Party in Kansas in 1859
i and an ardent supporter of Lincoln, whom he urged to begin
his campaign for the Presidency in that troubled territory.

Wilder felt that Lincoln should know the attitude of those
west of the Missouri River, and since Kansas was divided in
its sympathy for John Brown, who summed up the struggle
against slavery in that region, he implored Lincoln to come
to see for himself the exact situation. Another reason why
Wilder insisted on Lincoln’s visiting Kansas late in the fall
of 1859 was the fact that the Republicans of the Territory were
almost solidly for Seward.

Charles Arthur Hawley , author and college professor, is at present
head of the Department of Language and Literature at Ottawa Uni-
versity, Ottawa, Kansas. From 1941 to 1948 he was pastor of the First
Presbyterian Church, Atchison , Kansas.

179

180

LINCOLN IN KANSAS

That Lincoln’s biographers neglected to tell of the begin-
ning of his campaign in Kansas is easy to understand. They .
knew little about it and little about the reasons which prompted
Lincoln to make the difficult tour. Kansas, usually thought of
as "bleeding” in the cause of "freedom,” as a matter of
fact, sympathized strongly with slavery in the section Lincoln
visited. As Fred W. Brinkerhoff recently pointed out:

An examination of the Kansas newspapers of the time of the tour
reveals no mention of the Lincoln visit and speeches with some notable
exceptions. These exceptions are the rather full accounts in the Leaven-
worth and Elwood newspapers, a single belated but valuable paragraph 1
in the Kansas Chief , then published at White Cloud, a paragraph in the ;
Emporia News and a reprint from a Leavenworth newspaper in a Man-
hattan publication.1

The references at the time were due to the enthusiasm of
the Harvard-trained New Englander, Daniel Webster Wilder. ;
Atchison, settled largely by Virginia and Tennessee pioneers, :
was so violently anti-abolitionist that Pardee Butler, who ,
openly declared himself an abolitionist, was tarred and feath-
ered and sent down the Missouri on a shaky raft, supposedly j
to his death. Notice was served that no "nigger-lover” need j
show his face in Atchison County. John Brown was declared ;
a traitor, a border ruffian, and several unprintable names.
"We’ll hang John Brown on a sour apple tree” was the theme
song.

When, finally, Lincoln spoke in Atchison on December
2,1859, the very day that John Brown was executed in Charles-
town, Virginia, the master of ceremonies referred to a paper
in his hand to remember the speaker’s name, and not one of i
the newspapers then published in Atchison mentioned his com-
ing or going. In the minds of the Atchison people, Lincoln ,
was identified with abolitionism and with John Brown. Kansas
missed the greatest opportunity in its history, for Lincoln used
substantially the same speech which, in the following Febru-

1 Fred W. Brinkerhoff, “The Kansas Tour of Lincoln the Candidate,” Kansas Historical
Quarterly , Vol. XIII, no. 5 (Feb-, 1945), 295.

CHARLES ARTHUR HAWLEY

181

ary, became forever famous as the Cooper Union Speech. If
Atchison had not so strongly supported the South, the speech
might have been known in history as the Atchison Speech,
and all Lincoln’s biographers would have devoted part of
their research to showing why he began his campaign west of
the Missouri River.

Atchison, just across the river from the slave state of
Missouri, was a most important river port at that time. Here
' the boats landed pioneers to be outfitted for the trek across
j the prairies to Santa Fe, Denver, and the Oregon Trail. At the
| east end of Atchison Street on the bank of the Missouri River
stood the National Hotel, subsidized by the New England
Emigrant Aid Company. Everybody knew that Emerson, Whit-
tier, Thoreau, and all the Boston and Concord "radicals” had
put money into it. Everyone knew that Emerson had declared
John Brown "a pure idealist of artless goodness,” and that
Gerrit Smith, the New York philanthropist and reformer, had
financed him. They were also well aware that Governor Rob-
inson of Kansas had "likened John Brown to Jesus Christ, and
said that the blow on the Pottawatomie was a great service to
the Free-State cause.”2 It was a strange combination of cir-
cumstances that sent Lincoln to Atchison on the very date John
Brown was hanged.

Across the Missouri River the feeling against John Brown
was bitter, and abolitionists in Atchison County, Kansas, never
tired of telling of the inhuman treatment the Missourians had
meted out to the Brown family. In 1854 three of Brown’s sons
came to Kansas. The following year two more sons arrived in
the Territory. All came to fight slavery, and this the Missouri
settlers knew right well. In the boat bringing the two sons in
1 1855 cholera broke out, and little Austin, aged four, son of
Jason Brown, died. When the boat stopped for repairs at
Waverly, Missouri, the Browns left it to bury the body of the

2 William E. Connelley, A Standard History of Kansas and Kansans (Chicago, 1918), I-:

[j 580.

182

LINCOLN IN KANSAS

boy. Before the burial party returned, the boat continued its
course to Atchison, leaving the mourners stranded. Nobody in
Missouri would supply them with food. On reaching their
home in Kansas, the sons wrote the story to their father, adding
that Missouri was trying to make Kansas a slave state. John
Brown set out for Kansas the same year; on the way he stopped
at Waver ly, disinterred the body of his grandson and took it
to Kansas. Even during this brief stop, his life was threatened.3
All these doings were fresh in the minds of Atchison County
people when Lincoln arrived.

Wilder urged Mark W. Delahay, a prominent lawyer
living in Leavenworth, whose wife4 was distantly related to
Lincoln, to join him in the invitation to Lincoln. The invitation
was sent during the summer, after Wilder had made a trip
to Springfield, Illinois, to talk the matter over with Lincoln.
The latter knew that the territory of Kansas would send dele-
gates to the Republican National Convention, and he evidently 1
wdshed, at least, to make an effort to win them. It is true that
Horace Greeley had prepared the way for Lincoln, having en-
dorsed him at the Osawatomie (home of John Brown) Con- j
vention5 the preceding May 18. Here the Republican Party in :
Kansas was firmly planted. The Territory election was to be
held on December 6, and those who invited Lincoln to Kansas
planned to have him in the Territory as near as possible to that
date. They trusted him with a great faith, and he had to act with
consummate tact, but Lincoln was equal to the occasion.

It is not likely that much publicity was given to Lincoln’s ;
visit except that Delahay told the Leavenworth Limes onj
November 28, to announce his coming in a day or two. Linally, |
on December 1, Lincoln reached Elwood. Wilder records the
event: "Abram Lincoln arrives in Elwood, and makes a [ I
speech that evening. He was met at St. Joseph by M. W. Dela- ; i

3 Connelley, Kansas and Kansans , I: 561-62.

4 Transactions of. the Kansas State Historical Society, 1901-1902, Vol. VII (Topeka, 1902), I
540; Henry Clay Whitney, Life on the Circuit with Lincoln (Caldwell, Idaho, 1940), 333.

5 Daniel W. Wilder, Annals of Kansas (Topeka, 1875), 201.

CHARLES ARTHUR HAWLEY 183

hay and D. W. Wilder. His speech was substantially the same
he made soon afterwards at the Cooper Institute, New York,
and one of the ablest and clearest ever delivered by an Ameri-
can statesman.”6 Wilder later gave more detail of Lincoln’s
I entrance to Kansas :

Delahay came to Elwood and stayed all night, I suppose. He and I
| went to St. Joseph the next morning, and way down south to the Hannibal
: depot (the Hannibal & St. Joe R.R., completed that year) and took Lin-
Icoln up town in an omnibus. I took him to a barber shop near the Plant-
s'ers’ House and bought for him the New York or Chicago papers at the
I postofhce news-stand. All sat in the dirt waiting for the ferryboat; to the
| Great Western hotel, a large frame building. That night he spoke in the
| dining-room of the hotel; the meeting announced by a man going through
f the streets pounding a gong. He stayed in Elwood that night, December
I 1, warm day; December 2, very cold; he went to Troy; spoke in the court-
house; speech replied to by Col. Andrew J. Ege [Agey], a native of Mary-
1 land. At Troy he was met by A. D. Richardson, my brother [A. Carter
' Wilder] and John P. Hatterscheidt. Then to Doniphan, then Atchison.
I B. F. Stringfellow in the audience. John A. Martin used to say that String-
K fellow called it the greatest antislavery speech he ever heard. Jeff. L.
| Dugger’s paper in Leavenworth [the Register] was Delahay’s organ, and
Delahay was the Kansas leader of the movement to secure Lincoln dele-
I gates to the Chicago convention of 1860. The speech I return is important.

The report must have been chiefly written by Lincoln; his language is
I used.7

These brief sentences are from a letter written by the Hon.
D. W. Wilder, April 22, 1902, to George W. Martin, then Sec-
retary of the Kansas State Historical Society. They can now be
supplemented by information passed on by the pioneers who
t heard Lincoln. Lincoln and his escorts crossed the Missouri
on the ferry connecting St. Joseph and Elwood. The latter town
at that time promised to be the leading Midwest city. It had
the best hotel in Kansas, the Great Western, with seventy-five
rooms. When the party reached the Great Western, Lincoln
; was consulted about a speech that night. He readily agreed and
seemed surprised that no speech had been scheduled. A crier
• was accordingly secured who went through the streets ringing

6 Wilder, Annals of Kansas, 231.

7 Trans. Kan. State Hist. Soc., 1901-1902, p. 536-37n.

184

LINCOLN IN KANSAS

a bell and shouting, "Abe Lincoln of Illinois will speak at 8 ;
o’clock in the dining room at the Great Western Hotel. Every-
body invited.”8 All students of Lincoln must forever remain
thankful to Daniel W. Wilder, editor of the Elwood Free
Press, for his resume of Lincoln’s first speech in Kansas. That]
resume in his Free Press, dated December 3, 1859, is as fol-:
lows:

Hon. Abraham Lincoln arrived in Elwood Thursday, December 1.
Although fatigued with the journey, and somewhat ‘ ‘under the weather,’]
he kindly consented to make a short speech here. A large number of out
citizens assembled at the Great Western hotel to hear him.

Mr. Lincoln was received with great enthusiasm. He stated the rea-j
sons why he was unable to make a speech this evening. He could only say,
a few words to us who had come out to meet Ijiim the first time he had!
placed his foot upon the soil of Kansas. Mr. Lincoln said that it was!:!
possible that we had local questions in regard to railroads, land grantsli
and internal improvements which were matters of deeper interest to us
than the questions arising out of national politics, but of these local ind
terests he knew nothing and should say nothing. We had, however, justl
adopted a state constitution, and it was probable that, under that consti-j
tution, we should soon cease our territorial existence, and come forwarcj
to take our place in the brotherhood of states, and act our part as a memji
ber of the confederation.

Kansas would be free, but the same questions we had here in regarc I
to freedom or slavery would arise in regard to other territories, and w<|
should have to take our part in deciding them. People often ask, “Wh) 1
make such a fuss about a few niggers?” I answer the question by asking a
What will you do to dispose of this question? The slaves constitute onejj
seventh of our entire population. Wherever there is an element of thi f N
magnitude in a government it will be talked about. The general feeling ii
regard to slavery has changed entirely since the early days of the republic I
You may examine the debates under the confederation in the convention n
that framed the constitution and in the first session of Congress and yob'
will not find a single man saying that slavery is a good thing. They aljl
believed it was an evil. They made the Northwest Territory, the onll
territory then belonging to the government, forever free. They prohibited
the African slave trade. Having thus prevented its extension and cut of;
the supply, the fathers of the republic believed slavery must soon disBj
appear.

There are only three clauses in the constitution which refer td
slavery, and in neither of them is the word “slave” or slavery mentioned Ii

Clipping from an old Atchison scrapbook.

CHARLES ARTHUR HAWLEY

185

The word is not used in the clause prohibiting the African slave trade; it
s not used in the clause which makes slaves a basis of representation; it
• s not used in the clause requiring the return of fugitive slaves; and yet, in
ill the debates in the convention the question was discussed and slaves
md slavery talked about. Now, why was this word kept out of that in-
strument, and so carefully kept out that a European, be he ever so intel-
ligent, if not familiar with our institutions, might read the constitution
swer and over again and never learn that slavery existed in the United
States? The reason is this : The framers of the organic law believed that
the constitution would outlast slavery, and they did not want a word
there to tell future generations that slavery had ever been legalized in
America.

Your territory has had a marked history — no other territory has
ever had such a history. There had been strife and bloodshed here; both
.parties had been guilty of outrages; he had his opinions as to the relative
•guilt of the parties, but he would not say who had been most to blame.
One fact was certain — there had been loss of life, destruction of property;

: ,our material interests had been retarded. Was this desirable? There is a
• peaceful way of settling these questions — the way adopted by government
until a recent period. The bloody code has grown out of the new policy
Jin regard to the government of territories.

Mr. Lincoln, in conclusion, adverted briefly to the Harper’s Ferry
affair. He believed the attack of Brown wrong for two reasons. It was a
(violation of law; and it was, as all such attacks must be, futile as to any
effect it might have on the extinction of a great evil.

“We have a means provided for the expression of our belief in regard
I to slavery — it is through the ballot box — the peaceful method provided
by the constitution. John Brown has shown great courage, rare unselfish-
ness, as even Governor Wise testifies. But no man, North or South, can
approve of violence and crime.’’ Mr. Lincoln closed his brief speech by
.wishing all to go out to the election on Tuesday and to vote as became the
dree men of Kansas.9

There has been no record saved as to the number who
heard Lincoln that night in the Great Western at Elwood.
Following the speech, Lincoln, Delahay, and Wilder had
"supper” together at the hotel and planned the itinerary for
the next two days. Lincoln slept that night in the Great
Western.

The next morning, December 2, Lincoln was up early.
The weather had suddenly changed, as it still does in Kansas,

9 Trans. ¥Jm. State Hist. Soc., 1901-1902, p. 536-38.

186

LINCOLN IN KANSAS

and a bitterly cold north wind was blowing. The only convey-;
ance to be had for the eight-mile trip to Troy was an open
briggy drawn by one horse. Delahay and Wilder accompanied:
Lincoln who "was blue with cold" all the way. Near Troy,
Lincoln was met by Henry Villard, a correspondent for a New:
York newspaper, who was returning from Colorado. He knew
Lincoln and was distressed as he saw how cold he looked. Hej
lent him a "buffalo" which Lincoln used on the remainder of
the trip.

The official reception committee at Troy was composed
of A. D. Richardson, Abel Carter Wilder, and John P. Hatter-
scheidt. Abel Wilder, brother of Hon. D. W. Wilder, was born|
in Massachusetts, March 18, 1828, and came to Kansas ini
March, 1857, drawn thither by the "Kansas question." Being
a friend of Wendell Phillips and other New England aboli-1
tionists, he felt deeply on the "question" of slavery* He was aj
delegate to the Osawatomie Convention, in May, 1859, and*
later became secretary of the first Republican central commit-
tee and served as chairman in I860 and 1862. He was chairman!
of the Kansas delegation at the Republican National Conven-;
tion at Chicago in I860. He was strongly in favor of Seward
who was the favorite of the Kansas Republicans from the call-
ing of the Osawatomie Convention. Lincoln knew this and
desired to win not only Abel Wilder but as many more as pos-
sible. All free-state Kansas newspapers were active in advocat-j
ing Seward’s candidacy. They all knew about him since hej
had dramatized the cause of freedom in the United States!
Senate. The rank and file Republicans of Kansas knew little:
about Lincoln.

Lincoln’s speech at Troy lasted for an hour and three
quarters and then turned into a debate as several slaveholders
replied to him. Kansas pioneers believed in freedom of speech
except when Pardee Butler, the Free-Soil preacher, wanted to
speak. It is likely that Lincoln used again the speech he had
given at Elwood. About forty persons came to the Troy court-

CHARLES ARTHUR HAWLEY

187

louse expecting great excitement as it was whispered about
hat Colonel Andrew J. Agey, the largest slaveowner in the
learby state and a native of Maryland, would challenge Lin-
:oln. No record of his words of reply has been preserved, but
t may be assumed that he used violent language and roundly
denounced John Brown, Gerrit Smith, and the New England
ibolitionists. Smith continued to the last to send money to
fohn Brown. On June 4, 1859, he sent John Brown $200 and
wrote: "You live in our hearts, and our prayer to God is that
/ou may have strength to continue in your Kansas work.”10

Immediately after the Troy speech, Lincoln was driven
:he ten miles to Doniphan, then a thriving town on the Mis-
souri River, named for General Alexander Doniphan. This
town was, in the 1850’s, the greatest rival of Atchison and
expected to be the metropolis of the Midwest. Later Doni-
phan declined when the Missouri changed its course and left

I it an inland town. Today it is only a remnant of a ghost town.
Doniphan as a river port had attracted such men as James
Redpath, who established there the Kansas Crusader of Free -
\iom, a pioneer Doniphan County newspaper, in 1857. Red-
t path, who had been an early correspondent of the New York
Tribune, for a short time gave Doniphan "the most brilliant
weekly publication Kansas has seen.”* 11 General James H. Lane
had pre-empted land and settled at Doniphan as had other
pioneer leaders of importance. Lincoln was eager to make a
good impression on this strategic river port town.

In Doniphan, Lincoln had luncheon and then gave his
: third speech which was probably a repetition of the one at
Elwood. He spoke in Ashel Lowe’s Hotel, one of the most im-
: posing buildings in the town. No record has survived as to the
number of persons who heard him, nor is there any mention
of reply. Lincoln must have sensed the tenseness of the com-
ing "rail-splitting campaign which had the effect of arousing

10 F. B. Sanborn, Recollections of Seventy Years (Boston, 1909), I: 166.

11 Illustrated Doniphan County , p. 23. This publication cannot be identified better. The
copy used by the author had long since lost covers and title page.

188

LINCOLN IN KANSAS

the Republicans to a high pitch of enthusiasm, which was
practically neutralized by the clamorous activity of the slaver)
adherents who advanced all the arguments possible to accom-
plish the defeat of the champion of freedom and equal rights!
Threats of secession were freely made by the Democrats, anc
the 'dare’ was as freely given by the Republicans.”12

From Doniphan Lincoln was driven by Howard Nesbit
in a two-horse carriage to Atchison, seven miles away.13 Accord-
ing to local tradition, the weather continued very cold, and!
Nesbit placed a lighted lantern under the buffalo robes to help!
keep Lincoln comfortable. Judge Nathan Price accompaniec
Nesbit and Lincoln to Atchison. They reached there late in the
afternoon and went to the Massasoit House which stood a!
Second and Main streets.

Word had reached Atchison, and preparations had beer
made to get out a large crowd to hear Lincoln. A brass banc
paraded the streets advertising the meeting that night at £
o’clock. The largest auditorium in the town was the Methodist!
Church which stood near the corner of Fifth and Parallel
streets, where a stone marker stands today commemorating
Atchison’s most distinguished opportunity. The use of th(
Methodist Church could not be readily obtained, as man)
Methodists believed slavery compatible with Christianity anc
later they were the only religious group in Atchison that sepa
rated into "North” and "South” over the war. Finally ali
objections were overruled and permission granted Lincoln tc
speak. After he reached the church, whither he was escorted b)
the brass band that had advertised his coming, he asked for i
glass of water. Mrs. Hill who lived "on the corner nearest the
church brought a pitcher of water and one of her best cup:
out of which Lincoln drank. After Lincoln became President
Mrs. Hill cherished this cup until her death.”14

12 Illustrated Doniphan County , p. 22.

13 Information given to the author by Mr. T. P. Armstrong and others who knew th<
Nesbit family and often heard Howard Nesbit tell the story of Lincoln’s tour.

14 Information given to the author by Miss Agnes Gracie, who for many years was
teacher in the Atchison school system and a student of Lincoln lore.

CHARLES ARTHUR HAWLEY

189

The church was crowded and many people stood up
around the sides of the auditorium. The Hon. Samuel C. Pome-
i- roy, later one of the first United States Senators from Kansas,

; introduced Lincoln. Pomeroy was an ardent supporter of
i Seward and was persuaded to introduce Lincoln only because
he was mayor of Atchison. To show his displeasure he had a
paper in his hand during the introduction and referred to it

■ to remember Lincoln’s name. Everybody was tense in Atchison
the night of December 2, 1859, because word had come that

; John Brown had been hanged that afternoon. Lincoln felt the
spirit of the crowd and "fitted his speech into the atmosphere.”
It was his opportunity and he "warned those who might be-
come guilty of being disloyal to the government, 'If you are
guilty of treason, we will hang you as you have hanged old
John Brown this afternoon.’ ”15 One in Lincoln’s audience re-
ported that the speech was "the most logical and vigorous”
he had ever heard from a Republican orator. Years later an-
other said, "I shall never forget how Lincoln looked, standing

■ in the little box of a pulpit with his strange ungraceful gestures
: as he leaned over, seeming with his long arms almost as if he

could touch his hearers upon the back benches.”16

The most valuable report on Lincoln’s visit to Atchison,
however, is preserved in the "Reminiscences of Franklin G.

* Adams”:

I had first seen Mr. Lincoln and heard him talk in Atchison in 1859.
He was not then popularly known in Kansas. He was known to be a can-
didate for the nomination in 1860 as president. The people of Kansas
were for Wm. H. Seward. Seward had fought our battles in the United
J i States senate. He was the idol of our people; yet Lincoln was greatly
admired for his noble defense of our free-state cause in his great debate
- with Douglas in 1858. In Atchison we appointed a committee to receive
it , him and to provide a place for his address in the evening. He was taken
to our best hotel, the Massasoit House, and a good many of the citizens

15 Clipping from an old Atchison scrapbook. John J. Ingalls is reported to have said
, many years later in referring to this speech that Lincoln, alluding to threats of secession, de-
1 dared: “If they attempt to put their threats into execution we will hang them as they have
j hanged old John Brown to-day.’’ Kansas Historical Quarterly, Feb., 1945, p- 306.

16 Clipping from an old Atchison scrapbook.

190

LINCOLN IN KANSAS

came into the hotel office to shake hands with him and to hear him talk!
He was soon started, with his chair tipped up, and among the first to enj
gage in conversation with him was Col. P. T. Abell, the head and brairl
of the proslavery party in our town and largely in the territory. Both hac! 1
been Kentuckians. Abell knew many citizens of Illinois who had movecjl
there from Kentucky. The two immediately found mutual acquaintance:!!

LINCOLN IN 1859

This picture, according to The Photographs of Abraham Lincoln (New!
York, 1944) by Frederick Hill Meserve and Carl Sandburg, was probably
made by S. M. Fassett in Chicago in October, 1859.

CHARLES ARTHUR HAWLEY

191

about whom they could converse, and Lincoln began to tell stories, relat-
ing incidents in the lives of Illinois Kentuckians.

I was on the committee to provide a place for the Lincoln meeting
that evening. Judge P. P. Wilcox was a member of the committee. The
best audience room in town was that of the Methodist church. Our com-
mittee hunted up the trustees, and Wilcox says he had considerable diffi-
culty in gaining consent to have a political meeting in a church. I scarcely
remember how it was, but Wilcox says we met with such a rebuff and re-
fusal that he lost his patience, and it took the best I could do in the way
of persuasion to get the church, which we did. I still remember the ap-
pearance of Mr. Lincoln as he walked up the aisle on entering the church
and took his place on the pulpit stand. He was awkward and forbidding,
but it required but a few words for him to dispel the unfavorable impres-
sion, and he was listened to with the deepest of interest by every member
of the audience.

I have mentioned the attachment of the people of Kansas for Wm.
H. Seward. Our own local paper, the Atchison Champion , of which John
A. Martin was the editor, made no mention of Mr. Lincoln’s presence in
Atchison at that time. Martin was wrapped up in Seward and could not
brook the thought of any encouragement or countenance given by the peo-
ple of Atchison to a rival candidate.17

Others who heard Lincoln in Atchison were General Ben-
jamin F. Stringfellow, one of the most violent proslavery lead-
ers in Atchison County and in the entire Territory. John J.
Ingalls was another Atchison citizen who was destined later
to gain fame as a statesman and poet. Frank A. Root, Kansas
pioneer and historian, was also there, as was John A. Martin,
later governor of Kansas. Ingalls, Adams, and Root all later
took great pleasure in retelling Lincoln’s Atchison visit. Lin-
coln spoke two hours and twenty minutes, and his audience
grew more enthusiastic as he continued. He felt this was his
opportunity, for if he gained Atchison he would win the
Kansas delegates from Seward. But he failed to win Kansas.
The important "free” newspapers remained loyal to Seward.
It is notable that John A. Martin, editor of the Atchison Cham-
pion, the most influential "free” newspaper in the Territory,
suppressed the story of Lincoln’s speech in Atchison and even
the fact that he was there. Martin had political ambitions and

17 Trans. Kan. State Hist. Soc., 1901-1902, p. 539-40.

192

LINCOLN IN KANSAS

believed Seward would be the Republican choice for President.
His loyalty to Seward was great enough to cause him to keep
Atchison out of American history and to give the glory of the
great speech to Cooper Union.

Lincoln spent the night in the Massasoit House at Atchi-
son wondering what impression he had made. He was a keen
politician, but Atchison made him wonder. The next morning.
December 3, a committee from Leavenworth called on him to
take him to that town which aspired to outdo Atchison in its
welcome. A brass band and a procession met him and escorted
him to the Mansion House where Colonel John C. Vaughan
gave an address of welcome. In a brief response Lincoln an-
nounced that he would speak that night at Stockton Hall. Thei!
Delahays had invited Lincoln to be their guest over Sunday,!
Delahay’s enthusiasm spread and there was a popular request
for another address on Monday night. Anxious to see the Ter-
ritory voting on December 6, he consented and stayed over tc
learn the result of the election. On December 7, Lincoln left
for Springfield, after his first and only week west of the
Missouri.

On the following April 11 the Republicans of Kansa^
Territory met at Lawrence in their convention. John A. Martin
of Atchison, was one of the delegates and exerted every influ
ence for Seward, and the six delegates pledged allegiance tc
him. Lincoln, however, still had some hopes for Kansas, anc
his Kansas trip did not drop out of his memory if it did out oi
his history. In March, I860, five months after his Kansas tour
he wrote to a lawyer friend, J. W. Somers, who had askec
whether his advice about settling in the West would be the
same as Horace Greeley’s. Lincoln replied: "If I went West
I think I would go to Kansas — to Leavenworth or Atchison
Both of them are, and will continue to be, fine growing
places.”18

18 John G. Nicolay and John Hay, Complete Works of Abraham Lincoln (New York, 1905)

VI: 6.

FIFTIETH ANNIVERSARY PUBLICATIONS

of the

Illinois State Historical Society

Two new books for fall

THE STORY OF ILLINOIS

By Theodore Calvin Pease

Here is a revised edition of the book which
for twenty-five years has been the only
authoritative one-volume history of the
state of Illinois. Well written, care-
fully documented.

October $5.00

Special to Members of the Historical Society: This Book and a
Year's Dues for $6.00.

THIS IS ILLINOIS

By Jay Monaghan

Illinois at a glance — a pictorial
history of America’s heartland. Excellent
photographs, rare early paintings, drawings
by eye-witnesses present a vivid picture
of the state’s development.

October $5.00

Special to Members of the Historical Society: This Book and a
Year's Dues for $6.00.

THE UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO PRESS

ILLINOIS ST

/S99-QM

By Theodore

THIS IS ILLINOIS

(A Pictorial History)
By Jay Monaghan;

Adlai E. Stevenson - Frazier Hunt
Carl Sandburs - Allan Nevins

Will Speak at the Golden Anniversary in Springfield

1ST0KICH SOCIETY

i iue'U&uj. yeasi-IVHV

SPRINGFIELD

OCTOBER 7 and 8

Annual Meeting and Celebration of
the Society’s Fiftieth Anniversary

Cook County's Showing

About 800 members of the Illinois State Historical Society live in
Cook County but, on the basis of total population, this is one of the
weakest showings among the 102 counties of the state — with more than
half of the state’s population it has less than a fourth of the Society’s
membership. The above map shows the distribution of this membership
throughout the county. Here again, as in the state map published in the
March Journal , the influence of educational institutions is shown — Evans-
ton (Northwestern University) and Hyde Park (University of Chicago)
both having relatively large memberships. Although the Loop shows
he largest number of members it is considered as a mailing rather than a

^sidence address,
r

NOTES ON OLD CAHOKIA

BY CHARLES E. PETERSON

Part Two: Fort Bowman (1778-1780)1

DURING the first three years of the Revolutionary War
in America the villages of the Illinois country remained
comparatively secure. Profiting from their long friendship with
the near-by Indian tribes, the French were left unmolested.

But the hostilities spread west. While Washington was
campaigning on the Atlantic seaboard a cruel war developed
on the Virginia frontier beyond the mountains; 1777 became
the "bloody year" south of the Ohio. Marauding Indians di-
rected from British Detroit made a nightmare of life in the
new settlements of Kentucky. Young George Rogers Clark,
a newcomer from Virginia, a leader of men and an Indian
fighter of uncommon skill and energy, conceived a campaign
to deflect the attention of the enemy by capturing and holding

1 Part one appeared in the March issue of this Journal. For the Revolutionary War
1 1 period the writer has relied mainly on James Alton James, Life of George Rogers Clark (Chicago,

I cl928) and George Rogers Clark Papers 1771-1781 ( Illinois Historical Collections , VIII, Springfield,

I 1912) and the introduction to Clarence Walworth Alvord, Cahokia Records ( Illinois Historical
ij Collections , II, Springfield, 1907). A portion of the vast store of “George Rogers Clark Papers’ ’
If in the Virginia State Library, Richmond, were examined in manuscript but what has been
f used represents only a minor sampling of this rich but formidable collection.

In May, 1949, Cahokia celebrated its two hundred and fiftieth anniversary. A number
I ; of publications were issued in connection with this event, notably a volume of new source
H material : Old Cahokia , under the general editorship of John Francis McDermott and published
i by the St. Louis Historical Documents Foundation (St. Louis, 1949). Chapter V of that
I volume contains some interesting Revolutionary War documents which supplement the ma-
il terial used in preparing this essay.

Charles E. Peterson is regional architect for the National Park
Service with headquarters in Richmond, Virginia. Part I of “ Notes on
Old Cahokia ” aftf) eared in the M.arch issue of this Journal. Part III
will aftfpear in the September number.

193

194

NOTES ON OLD CAHOKIA

the Illinois country.2 Spies sent out to the villages on the Mis-
sissippi brought back encouraging intelligence. British troops
had been withdrawn for over a year and it was believed that
the French inhabitants could be persuaded to join the Ameri-
can cause. Clark rode back over the mountains and sold the
idea to Governor Patrick Henry at Williamsburg. Commis-
sioned a lieutenant colonel, he was then placed in command of
the prospective expedition.

Clark’s orders, issued January 2, 1778, directed him to
raise seven companies of soldiers of fifty men each, procure
boats at Fort Pitt and proceed with great secrecy to attack and
occupy Kaskaskia. There he was then to test the allegiance of
the French to the revolutionary cause, and, if sympathetic, they }
were to "be treated as fellow citizens & their persons & prop-
erty duly secured.” However, if they did not accede to these jj
demands, "they must feel the miseries of war under the
directions of that Humanity that has hitherto distinguished
Americans.”3

The story of the expedition has been outlined many times, r
It paddled down the Ohio River to Fort Massac where it de-
barked and quickly marched overland to the Mississippi. The j
British agent at Kaskaskia did not have enough warning to get i|
reinforcements and he was forced to surrender — without hav-
ing fired a shot — on July 4, 1778- — a fitting second anniversary
of the Declaration of Independence. Two days later Clark 5
dispatched Captain Joseph Bowman and a mixed company of
Americans and French up to surprise Cahokia. Quoting Bow-
man’s own words:

We rode up to the commander’s house and demanded a surrender.
He accordingly surrendered himself, likewise all the inhabitants of the
place. I then demanded of them to take the oath of fidelity to the states,

2 The strategy of the campaign is clearly set out in a letter from Governor Patrick Henry
to John Todd, Williamsburg, Dec. 12, 1778: “One Great Good expected from Holding the
Illinoiss is to overaw the Indians from warring on our Settlers on this side the Ohio . . .by
being placed on the back of them [you] may inflict timly Chastizement on these enemies,
whose Towns are an easy prey in absince of their Warriors.” Edward G. Mason, ed., Early
Chicago and Illinois ( Chicago Historical Society s Collections , IV, Chicago, 1890), 291.

3 Patrick Henry to Clark, Jan. 2, 1778, James, Clark Papers, 34-35.

CHARLES E. PETERSON

195

otherwise I should treat them as enemies. They told me they would give
: me an answer next morning. I then took possession of a strong stone
house, well fortified for war, and soon got word that there was a man in
the town who would immediately raise 150 Indians, who were near at
i hand, and cut me off. I, being much on my guard, happened to find out
the person and confined him under a guard, and lay on our arms that night,
[ this being the third night we had not closed our eyes. The next morning
I assembled the inhabitants together, and, before ten o’clock, 105 of them
\ took the oath of fidelity to the states.4

The fall of Cahokia was celebrated at headquarters with the
aid of nine bottles of rum.5

The very day of this coup Bowman received a message
of welcome from the Spanish Lieutenant Governor Fernando
de Leyba of St. Louis congratulating him on his happy arrival
in the Illinois country. A close military liaison was soon estab-
lished and the Virginians were pleasantly entertained across
i the river.6 Captain Bowman remained in command at Cahokia,

4 Bowman to George Brinker, Kaskaskia, July 30, 1778. James, Clark Papers , 616.
L Clark’s version of this adds a great deal of color. He first tells how he persuaded the people
H of Kaskaskia to help win their Cahokia neighbors to his side: “they appeared Highly please
|| at the Idea and in the Eavening the Majr set out with a Troop but little Inferiour to the one
i| we had Marched into the Cuntrey the French being commanded by their former militia
K officircers these new Friends of ours was so Elated at thought of the Perade they ware to
I make at Kohas that they ware too much Ingaged in Equ[i]ping themselves to appear to the
I , best advantage that it was night before the party Moved the distance [of] 20 Leagues that it
|f was late in the Morning of the 6th before they Reach Kohokia detaining every person they
f i Met with they got into the borders of the Town before they ware discovered the Inhabitants
H was at first much allarmed at being thus suddenly visited by strangers in a Hostile appearance
K and ordered to surrender the Town even by their Friends and Relations but as the confution
l| among the Women Children appeard greater than they expected from the cry of the big
| Knife being in Town they Amedeately assumed and gave the people a detail of what had
K happened at Kaskaskias the Majr informed them not to be allarmed that although Resistence
• at present was out of the question he would convince them that he would prever their friend-
|| ship than otherways that he was authorized to inform them that they ware at Liberty to be-
ll come Free americans as their Friends at Kaskaskias had or that did not chuse it might move
|| out of the Cuntrv except those that had been ingaged in Inciting the Indians to war Liberty
| and Fredom & hozaing for the Americans rang thugh the whole Town the Kaskaskias Gentn
| dispersed among their Friends in a few hours the whole was Imicable [arranged] and Majr
Bowman snugly Quartered in the old British Fort some Individuals said that the Town was
I given up too tamely, but little attention was paid to them a considerable number of Indians
: rhat was then incampt in the Neighborhood as this was a principal post of Trade amediately
t: fled.’’ James, Clark Papers, 233.

Spanish Lt. Governor Leyba from across the river reported to New Orleans that there
| > were thirty-two men in Bowman’s party, that the Cahokians were first required to surrender
' their arms and then forced to take the oath of allegiance. The chief object of Clark’s sending
| this party so promptly, according to Leyba, was to seize Gabriel Cerre, a prominent merchant
■ of Kaskaskia who, it turned out, was beyond their reach in St. Louis. Leyba to Galvez, St.

; ; Louis, July I], 1778, American Historical Review, Vol. 41, no. 1 (Oct., 1935), 96.

I 5 Voucher, Aug. 14, 1778. George Rogers Clark Papers (MSS, Virginia State Library,
Richmond).

6 Leyba to Bowman, St. Louis, July 6, 1778, Leyba to Galvez, Nov. 16, 1778, American

196

NOTES ON OLD CAHOKIA

organized a militia company of young men and repaired the
fort. A local government was set up under what was styled the
"Court of the Committee of Cahokia” and when an election
was held (to the surprise of the villagers) Bowman was elect- |
ed judge. The stone house taken over by the Virginians became
in effect the northwest bastion of the American colonial de-
fense. It was known as "Fort Bowman.”7

Six weeks later Cahokia was the scene of a great Indian
council. Uninvited, tribes from all the area east of the Mis- j
sissippi — some coming as far as five hundred miles — "flocked
into the Town of Cohos to treat for peace, and to hear what
the Big Knives had to say.” There was a great deal of high-
flown oratory, as was customary on such occasions. Clark had
hastily studied French and Spanish Indian diplomacy, as prac- i
ticed in these parts, and remained master of the situation.

"I must confess,” he wrote afterwards, "that I was under
some apprehention [r/V] among such a number of Devils.”
That there were good grounds for concern was soon evident.
A party of Puants ("Stinkers” — from Wisconsin) rashly at- ,
tempted to kidnap Clark from his quarters on the second night. !
The guard was alert, however, and the culprits were quickly |
foiled and apprehended. To the relief of the Americans, Ca- !
hokia sprang to arms, giving proof of the loyalty of the French
inhabitants. During all this excitement Clark affected great
nonchalance, "assembled a Number of Gentlemen & Ladies,!
and danced nearly the whole Night.” No chances were taken,
however, for unknown to the Indians, a guard of fifty men
.

Historical Review, Oct., 1935, pp. 93-94, 101-102. Clark’s Memoir, James, Clark Papers, 233-35,
239. Alvord stated that the Spanish had been apprised of Clark’s expedition before its arrival. |
C. W. Alvord, “Virginia and the West,’’ Mississippi Valley Historical Review, Vol. Ill, no. 1 i
(June, 1916), 32.

7 There were several Bowmans in the West. The Cahokia fort was presumably named
after its commander, as was Fort Clark at Kaskaskia. According to James, “Major Joseph
Bowman was one of Clark’s most trusted associates. He was born in Virginia in 1752. When
a young man, he came to Kentucky. He was commissioned major of a battalion of volunteers
and rendered notable service to Clark at Kaskaskia, Cahokia and Vincennes. His death oc-i
curred at Vincennes, February 5, 1782.’’ James, Clark Papers, 155n. The commandant of the ij
village was Francois Trottier, captains, Michel Beaulieu and Pierre Godin, called Turanjeau. j
Alvord, Cahokia Records, lvi.

CHARLES E. PETERSON 197

was concealed in a parlor adjoining the festivities. The In-
dians were deeply impressed by this bold front and ten or
twelve nations chose then and there to make peace. These nego-
tiations were later to pay off.

Vigilance was not relaxed. An example was made of one
Cahokian who was caught sending intelligence to a friend
near Detroit. The offender was "tied to the tail of a Cart and
by drum Received a lash at every Door in Town and Burnt
in the Hand for other Misdemeneours."8 Clark threatened to
hang the next traitor.9 During the winter Kaskaskia had an
Indian alarm and Bowman hastened down with his Cahokia
militia. The enemy appeared but failed to attack on learning
of the reinforcement. The Cahokians, who had arrived just in
time, were gratefully presented by Clark with "an Elegant
Suit of Colours" and enough arms to complete their needs.
To the annoyance of Kaskaskia they then "paraded about
Town with their New Flag and Equipments," as Clark wrote,
"and Viewed themselves as superior to the young Fellows [of]
Kaskaskias which cause[d] so much anomosity [j 7c] between
the two parties that it did not subside untill I interfeared.”10
January brought the bad news that the British had just
? occupied Vincennes to the east on the Wabash River. Clark
immediately sent over several small parties to pick up some
prisoners and find out what was going on. The British were
likewise spying on the Illinois country and there were rumors
of a major attack from Vincennes being planned by Hamil-
: ton.11 Clark quickly determined to take the initiative and called
| his little army together. Money and supplies were collected.

On February 4, Captain McCarty arrived at headquarters with
phis Cahokia volunteers. Kaskaskia was buzzing with the ex-
citement of preparing for an attack on Vincennes; "the Ladies

[I 8 Clark’s Memoir, James, Clark Papers, 261. Clark spelled his name “Denny”; perhaps
i ; it should have been “Denis.”

9 Clark to Leyba, Kaskaskia, Jan. 23, 1779, American Historical Review, Oct., 1935, p. 104.

10 Clark’s Memoir, James, Clark Papers, 266.

Ij 11 Clark to Leyba, Kaskaskia, Jan. 23, 1779; Leyba to Galvez, St. Louis, Feb. 5, 1779,
American Historical Review, Oct., 1935, pp- 104-106. Leyba gave the American strength as 190
j men “in a good log fort with seven cannon.”

198

NOTES ON OLD CAHOKIA

began also to be spirited and interest themselves in the Expe-
dition which had great Effect on the Young men.” They were
blessed by the priest Gibault and started off across the frozen
prairies. This epic march across flooded bottomlands, one of
the great physical feats of the Revolutionary War, took the
British by surprise and ended with the surrender of Vincennes.
Governor Hamilton, notorious on the American frontier as the
"Hair Buyer,” was put in irons and dragged off to jail in Wil-
liamsburg. Fort Sackville, his stronghold, was renamed Fort
Patrick Henry. Over half of Clark’s attacking force were Illi-
nois French. The Cahokians, who had participated in all of
this, helped divide the captured stores and then marched back
to resume guard at their own village.

The brilliant success of the expedition made a great im-
pression on Leyba, who wrote to Governor Patrick Henry,
"From the time that my friend Colonel Clark arrived in this
place, fraternal harmony has reigned between the people from
the United States and the vassals of his Catholic Majesty.”12
The British in Canada were shocked. A rumor even gained cur-
rency that Clark’s men were at Milwaukee building boats for
a naval campaign on the Great Lakes.13

Clark came up to Cahokia and St. Louis in April, project-
ing an invasion of Detroit. This never materialized, but that
summer Cahokia did mount an expedition for a reconnaissance
of the Illinois River, which was led by Major Godefroy Linctot,
Indian agent for Virginia and captain of a militia company.
There was no contact with the enemy, but the move, combined
with propaganda, served to throw a British counter-expedition
into confusion. In August Captain McCarty, with lieutenants
Perrault and Clark and forty Virginians, was assigned to the
defense of Cahokia and arrived there soon afterwards.14 They

12 Leyba to Henry, St. Louis, Apr. 23, 1779, American Historical Review , Oct., 1935, p. 107

13 Arent S. De Peyster to Frederick Haldimand, Michilimackinac, May 2, 1779, Michigan
Pioneer and Historical Society Collections , IX (Lansing, 1886), 379-80.

14 Clark’s General Orders, Aug. 5, 1779, James, Clark Papers, 354. Thomas Quirk to
Linctot, Vincennes, Aug. 20, 1779, Ibid., 359-60. Memorial, Sept., 1780, Alvord, Cahokia
Papers, 549.

CHARLES E. PETERSON 199

were given a house for a barracks and the village guaranteed
them provisions.

Most important of all, Spain declared war and both sides
of the river were now openly hostile to the British. Long
before the arrival of Clark the Spanish had been giving sur-
reptitious aid to the Americans, mainly through the governor
at New Orleans. There was much unneutral activity on the
Mississippi. In the spring of 1778 it was an open secret in the
Illinois country that the Spanish commandant at St. Louis had
received a letter from a member of the Continental Congress
; thanking him for supplies received and the safe conduct of
American nationals.15 Shortly afterwards a cargo of American
« goods was received at St. Louis under Spanish protection.16
The British, well aware of what was going on, determined to
put a stop to this leak in their blockade of the Colonies. No
- sooner had Spain declared war than a great campaign was
planned in which the British and their Indian allies were
to come down from Canada and up from the Gulf, and, sweep-
ing all before them, meet in victory at Natchez. Early in 1780
forces were being assembled in the north. Their orders, written
at Michilimackinac by Governor Sinclair, included the sacking
of settlements on both sides of the Mississippi. "In case the
English garrison does not need all of the animals of Kahokia
village you will remove all their horned cattle without leaving
them a Single Cow and take such Horses as you need.”17

The preparations were too vast to keep secret and alarms
flew from village to village in the Illinois country. On April
11, the citizens of Cahokia sent an urgent plea to General

15 Charles Gratiot to Morgan, Cahokia, Mar. 5, 1778, Gratiot Papers, Billon Transla-
tions (MSS, Missouri Historical Society, St. Louis).

15 Richard McCarty to John Askin, St. Urseuls, June 7, 1778, Michigan Pioneer and His-
sj torical Society Collections , IX: 368-69. The cargo, remarkably enough, consisted of liquor and
150 bales of red, white, and blue broadcloth.

17 Patrick Sinclair to Charles Langlade, Michilimackinac, 1780 (MSS, Ayer Collection,
Newberry Library, Chicago). The plans also called for Captain Emanuel Hesse to remain at
St. Louis, and for the division of the rich Missouri River fur trade among those traders who
; would co-operate in the occupation. Cahokia, with St. Louis, was to send her cattle to
Michilimackinac by way of La Bay for the use of the Indians on their victorious return from
this campaign. Patrick Sinclair to Frederick Haldimand, Michilimackinac, May 29, 1780,

! Michigan Pioneer and Historical Society Collections , IX: 548-49.

200

NOTES ON OLD CAHOKIA

— Courtesy Pennsylvania Historical Society

Map of Cahokia, 1766(?)

Reproduced here is the principal portion of an untitled manuscript
map found by Charles E. Peterson in the papers of Thomas Hutchins at thef
Historical Society of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, and now published for
the first time. It was presumably surveyed and drawn by Hutchins, when,
as ensign and topographer of the British Colonial Army, he visited Ca-
hokia in the summer of 1766. The key is printed on the opposite page.

Internal evidence leads to the conclusion that this remarkable record
is quite accurate in detail. The smallest squares in the graphic scale repre-
sent one surveyor’s chain or sixty-six English feet. The public square fac-
ing the stream known as “the Rigolet’’ has a small enclosed building, not
identified, but probably the French fort described by Captain Pittman as
“a small house standing in the center of the village.’’

To the right (No. 24) is a building keyed to the name Jean La
Poincet (Lapance) — probably what is now called the Cahokia Court-
house— with an orchard behind it. Two squares to the left is the long
rectangular mission property with four buildings, three enclosures, and

CHARLES E. PETERSON

201

a large orchard. In 1766 this was owned by a lawyer of Montreal, M.

, Valentine Jautard. In this property, No. 64, keyed to the name Pier Du
Main, was probably the Abbe du Forget’s new stone presbytere, later forti-
fied by the British and Americans (Fort Bowman) and, still later the site
of the old frame church now being restored. No church structure is
i identified on this map.

“The Barrier’’ is the great fence of the common fields, which lay
; to the left. The road to Fort Chartres is identified. In the lower center,
f the road to the new town of Paincourt or St. Louis is shown. Key to the
map follows :

Gerardine No. 1 & 2

I Capt. Cleremont 3 & 4

; Grondine 5

Lockkette 6

Philip LaFlame 7

: Claude Marlowe 8

Kele 9

Charles Beouf LaFlame 10

1 Nicolt 11

■ Mm Le Becasse 12

Francois LaPiere 14

Pilette 15

Joseph La Chance 16

Philip Jervie 17

Allixe Corville 18

Portemoie 19

Mm Francois Labi 20

Piere Sommillie 21

Piere Goddir Toranseau 22

Francois Trotie 23

Jean La Poincet 24

Michel Boleau 25

Chretienne 26

Francois Pancresse 27

Joseph Languedoc 28

Boudriau Gammon

29 & 31 A Barn

Jacquet or Germain 30

Grammont 32

Ceciele. . . .34 & 33 A Negro Lott
Robert. .. .36 & 35 ..ditto..
Amiable LePage 37

i Joseph LePage. .38 & 60 his Barn
Billon & Brother 39

Messr Baynton & Compy 43

Jacque LeCompte 41

Ballcoure 42

Jacque Leonnois

43 & Vacant Lott 61

Courie 44

Vincent Ferran 45

Francois Lonval 46

Allixe Buette 47

Francois Dorienne 48

Mr Ferrete 49 & 59 a Barn

F Mercie 51

Charle Le Compte 52

Toranseaus Barn 53

F. Mercies Barn 54

A. Buettes Barn . 55 or M. Boleau’s

Lockkettes Barn 56

Grammont 57

Ceceiles Barn 58

Robert’s Barn 60

Bartholomew 62

Chauvin smiths Shop No. 63

Kele 63 a Barn

Pier Du Main 64

Jean Batist sans Fa§on or Har-

mand 65

rCrown Lotts 4 ~v

jjMmFerete the Segts Widow ( !
yLa Chance of Oka
Trotie

-M. La Pancet
Indian Village & Burying

Ground No. 64

202

NOTES ON OLD CAHOKIA

Clark, who was then engaged in building a fort at the mouth
of the Ohio River.18 "We are on the eve of being attacked in
our village,” ran the message, "and can not work at the cultiva-
tion of our grounds, if we have not prompt assistance.”19 Early I
in May Captain John Rogers came up from the south with a
company of Virginia cavalry called "Light Dragoons” to gar-
rison Fort Bowman which was cleaned up, repaired, and made1
ready fqr action.20 On May 15, Rogers went to St. Louis with
Colonel John Montgomery to make joint defense plans with;
the Spanish commandant. At first it was thought that an expe-
dition should be sent up the river to head off the attack. Mont-
gomery proposed to mount two hundred and fifty men — one
hundred of whom would be provided from St. Louis — fully!
provisioned and equipped with boats, artillery, and ammuni-
tion. As the colonel, whose bravery evidently outclassed his
spelling, wrote, "if they prove two hard for us it is only to
Retreate down Streeme But Should their number Note be
more than two for one Nothing but death Shall yeald the Sur-
render.” The Cahokians were game and "redy to turn out to
a man.”21 But it was fortunate that this party never left, for the

18 This was Fort Jefferson. Rumor around St. Louis in the spring of 1780 had it that;
Clark was going to build “a considerable stone fort” both at the mouth of the Ohio and at
Cahokia. J. Papin to Reilhe, St. Louis, March 23, 1780, Michigan Pioneer and Historical SocietyX
Collections , X (Lansing, 1888), 381-82. Actually Clark was planning to evacuate the Illinois i
country as soon as Fort Jefferson was completed. Governor Jefferson had directed Clark to ;
have ‘‘only as many men as will be necessary for keeping the Illinois settlements in spirits.”]
Jefferson to Clark, Williamsburg, Jan. 29, 1780, Clarence W. Alvord, Kaskaskia Records (lilt- 9
nois Historical Collections , V, Springfield, 1909), 147. The British attacked before this could)
be done.

19 James, Clark Papers, 411.

20 Rogers to Clark, Kaskaskia, May 9, 1780, Rogers to Clark, Cahokia, May 15, 1780, |
Voorhis Collection (MSS, Missouri Historical Society, St. Louis).

21 John Montgomery to Clark, Fort Bowman, May 15, 1780, Voorhis Collection (MSS,|
Missouri Historical Society, St. Louis).

Some idea of the logistics of the defense may be got from the Cahokia and Fort Bowman
vouchers of the George Rogers Clark Papers :

May 13, 1780, to Mr. Buteau, Pere, (translation) “You are ordered to board a soldier of Jj
the garrison for which you will render an account.” (Signed) F. Trottier, Captain of Militia.

May 18, ‘‘I promise to pay Mr. La Croix or his order on the first day of September next,
the quantity of five hundred Weight of Deers Leather or the Value therof in Merchandize at il
the Prise that Merchandize may Bear in this Country By the whole Sale at that time for value
of him received in one Black Stalion with a good Saddle and Bridle for the Light Dragoons of)
my Troop.” (Signed) John Rogers, Captain Light Dragoons.

May 24, To Mr. Crutchen, Commissary, ‘‘Sir — Please issue the Bearer forty Rations of I
provisions for proceeding up the Mississippi on the Service of the State.” (Signed) Richard j
McCarty.

CHARLES E. PETERSON

203

enemy, striking on May 26, were found to number a thousand
strong.

On receiving urgent dispatches from the commandants of
St. Louis and Cahokia, Clark had hastened up the river, arriv-
ing less than twenty-four hours before the enemy. Cahokia,
[garrisoned with some four hundred troops, held off the in-
jvaders with a loss of only one Virginia officer, three men, and
five prisoners.22 St. Louis was attacked soon afterward. The
'wind being from the wrong quarter, warning signals were not
heard and a number of persons out in the fields west of that
[town were killed.23 Although the defense was considerably out-
numbered, the attacking force was little more than a frontier
mob poorly led. After performing the usual barbarities, includ-
ing the burning alive of victims, they retired to the northward.
’The year 1780 was long remembered as "L’ Anne e du Coup.”2i
A pursuit was organized under Colonel Montgomery, who
[left Cahokia on June 13 with a large party of soldiers and In-
dians.25 The Spanish commandant at St. Louis furnished an

22 Sinclair to Haldimand, Michilimackinac, July 8, 1780, Michigan Pioneer and Historical
^Society Collections , IX: 558-60.

23 John Montgomery to Board of Commissioners for the Settlement of Western Accounts,
iFeb. 22, 1783, Calendar of Virginia State Papers , III (Richmond, 1883), 441-44. A. P. Nasatir,
r ‘The Anglo-Spanish Frontier in the Illinois Country during the American Revolution 1779-
h783, ” Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society , Vol. 21, no. 3 (Oct., 1928), 321. See also
ifames Alton James, “The Significance of the Attack on St. Louis, 1780’’ in Proceedings of the
Mississippi Valley Historical Association , 1908-1909 , Vol. II (Cedar Rapids, Iowa, 1910), 212.

24 Through information received from the Indians of the vicinity, Sinclair had been led
|:o believe the “reduction’’ of St. Louis would not be difficult. There were said to be only
f:wenty men and a like number of brass cannon. The failure of the attack he blamed to the
perfidy of Ducharme and Calve, two traders in the command. Sinclair to Haldimand, Michili-
]Tiackinac, Feb. 17, Julv 8, 1780, Michigan Pioneer and Historical Society Collections , IX: 546-47,

558-60.

Accounts of the attack appear in all St. Louis histories. See also A. P. Nasatir, “The
5nglo-Spanish Frontier in the Illinois Country during the American Revolution 1779-1783,”

1 four. III. State Hist. Soc., Vol. 21, no. 3 (Oct., 1928), 318.

25 Orders, receipts, and other memoranda in the George Rogers Clark Papers give an
dea of the preparations made at Fort Bowman for the expedition. Many are signed by Martin
larney or James Finn, quartermasters. Here are samples:

fune 2. To the armorer: “Sir please to Repair the Bearer [’s] Gun.’’

3. Receipt for “dear Skins for the Use of troops Going on the Exped.”

6. “Please to make a knew Britch and harden Steel of Nicholas Totles. GunandCharge

to the States.”

7. Receipt to Bissonet for twenty oars and for hauling same in cart.

9. To Vashure: “Please to make two Loops for David Ambrous’ Gun.”

10. To Vashure: “Please to make Fifty Nails to Reapar the Barge.”

11. To Vashure: “Please to make a Cock pin for one of the Indians Going on the Ex-

pedition.”

204

NOTES ON OLD CAHOKIA

additional hundred troops, making a total of three hundred!
and fifty. The expedition then proceeded up the Mississippi
and Illinois rivers to Peoria and then across to the Rock River.
They missed the enemy completely and had to be content with
burning a Sauk Indian village and destroying its crops.26 Late
in July the men were back in Cahokia, after great hardships!,
during which they had to eat their own horses.27 "For my part,”
wrote Captain Rogers, "I am very sorry that and Expedition
was ever attempted.”28 The French blamed the Virginians for;
its failure, charging them with lack of management and bad
conduct.29

However, the captains of the militia and the principal
inhabitants met two weeks later in a general council of war tc
decide on measures for defense. It was decided to send a scout-
ing party of ten men to reconnoiter the Illinois River, that each
inhabitant should keep a two weeks’ supply of food on hand
for any emergency and that all boats at the village should bei
secured and guarded.30

Cahokia then waited for another attack, which neven
came. While Clark had been with his men they were kept undei
control.31 But the Colonel had to leave Cahokia on June 4, foJ
Kentucky, where the Indians were again raiding the outposts!
Captain Rogers gives a dismal picture of conditions at Cahokia
shortly afterward:

We last Night received Intelegence of a large party of White ancji

June 12. Receipt to Guion for 140 pounds of flour for making “bisket.”

” 12. Receipt for “tin lb. of Lead for the Use of the troops Going on the Expedition.”

A “Return of Volunteers” dated June 12, shows that one group of a dozen Cahokians ha<
elected John J. R. Hanson as their leader and they applied for the necessary provisions an<
ammunition.

26 Montgomery to Board of Commissioners for the Settlement of Western Accounts, Feb
22, 1783, Calendar of Virginia State Papers , III: 441-44. Jour. III. State Hist. Soc., Oct., 1928, p
322.

27 Montgomery to George Webb, Richmond, Apr. 23, 1782, Alvord, Kaskaskia Records

198.

28 Rogers to Clark, Kaskaskia, July 22, 1780, Voorhis Collection.

29 Memorial, Sept. 21, 1780, Alvord, Cahokia Records , 541.

30 Court record, Aug. 16, 1780, Alvord, Cahokia Records, 61-63. The commandant at St
Louis had invited them to provide half the number of a 50-man detachment for this purpose
Ibid., 59.

31 “Although his soldiers are bandits in appearance, he has them under the best of con
trol.” Leyden to Galvez, St. Louis, July 21, 1778, American Historical Review, Oct., 1935, p. 9£

CHARLES E. PETERSON

205

[other Savages on their way to This place again, much larger than the
former, if they come I expect they will meet with a reciption sootable for
( such Cattle as they are. . . I begin to Get very Uneasy to see no Likely
; hood of being furnished and my Men are geting much more so; as to the
• way I am situate here tis the most Disageable I ever was in with the sight
■ of confusion hussle Bussle Neglegence & regular Irregularity and Lastly
|:No Subordination whatever. . . to serve in a place where there is neither
j? Credit Honour reputation nor Eaven the Good will of the very people you
hare defending tis hard serveing. two hard for me.82

For more than a year there had been serious differences
between the civilian and the military. Captain McCarty’s
French recruits were deserting and crossing the river to St.
Louis, and the Cahokians threatening to drive the rest away as
i early as September, 1779. 33 The Virginians were in for a bad
i winter.

The habitants, taking stock of their own troubles, found
i them numerous. Many indignities rankled in their breasts. One
: fifth of their cattle and more than forty horses had been taken
by the Virginians, who, in the meantime, "'did not deign to
do the least guard duty.” A hundred men were billeted with
the various families of the village and there was friction in
all quarters. When one soldier had complained about the bill
of fare in the home where he was quartered his captain had
i ; demanded that the host, though a poor man, kill all his chick-
ens to tone up the menu. Major Williams, commanding at
. Cahokia, held a pistol at the head of one Gagne and threatened
to blow off his head when he remonstrated against taking one
of these unwelcome boarders. It was also claimed that the same
officer seized some rum at the house of Lefevre, the blacksmith,
when he was refused the "loan” of it. Searching for flour, a
sergeant and his men threatened the owners of the mills where
they could find them, and broke into others and marked them
with the stamp of the state of Virginia as confiscated. Payment

32 Rogers to Clark, Cahoes, Aug. 2, 1780, Voorhis Collection.

33 John Williams to Clark, Kaskaskia, Sept. 25, 1779, Alvord, Kaskaskia Records, 122-23,
! also Sept. 29, 1779, ibid., 125-26.

Before the end of the year, however, it was reported of the Virginians “there is no dis-
1 cipline observed.” Hamilton to Haldimand, Vincennes, Dec. 18, 1778, H. W. Beckwith, ed.,
Illinois Historical Collections , I (Springfield, 1903), 232.

206

NOTES ON OLD CAHOKIA

could not be made for such damages because the paper money
of the Continental Congress carried by the Virginians had be-
come practically worthless— "not worth a Continental.” It
was even suspected that Major McCarty was plotting to send
two of the leading citizens back to Virginia in irons to satisfy
a personal grudge.34 The morale of the Virginians, who seem
to have retired after the failure of their Rock River expedition,
sank to an absolute low. Captain McCarty crossed with the
civil government and was arrested for treason by Colonel
Montgomery. The latter was suspected of embezzling some pel-
tries and "taking up with an infamous Girl, leaving his wife
& flying down the River” to New Orleans.35

Cahokia was Anally evacuated on orders to come to the
relief of Fort Jefferson. It must have been welcome news to the
beleaguered garrison, which was now sick and starving. Pro-
visions were down to corn without either grease or salt and ii
several men died. Captain McCarty commandeered some pri-
vate boats for the evacuation, and, passing down the Missis-
sippi, had to leave several of the ill along the way.36

In these unhappy times an adventurer from France by the i
name of Augustin Mottin de la Balme arrived in the Illinois !
country from the East. Recommended by Benjamin Franklin

34 A petition by the French for indemnity in after years declared that the Illinois Regi- [
ment “at their arrival among us. were in the most shabby and wretched state, very little short >
of absolute nakedness; upon the pledged faith of the United States, all the stores throughout (
the Country were freelv opened to them succours of every kind they wanted; we supplied them !:
with alacrity, and for a number of Years, gave away our provisions, our Peltries, our Store
Goods, untill we had nothing left to give.” Memorial to Congress, Feb. 28, 1788, Alvord, !]
Kaskaskia Records, 454-55-

That the lack of clothes was no exaggeration is shown in a letter from Captain John
Rogers on the way to Cahokia: “Pray hurry Mr. Carney about having the Skins Dressed for ij
the use of my Troop and should the Goods Come up soon I hope I may get Timely notice so
that I may get the remdr. of the Cloathing for my Men ... so that we may be in order for
Business a Soldier well cloathed is worth two Naked ones it Inspires them with Corage where-
as a Naked man is Cowed and ashamed of himself.” Rogers to Clark, Kaskaskia, May 8,
1780, Voorhis Collection.

Leyba wrote that Clark had arrived at Kaskaskia “in hunting shirt and breech cloth,
naked of foot and limb and with his bed, food, and gun on his shoulder.” Leyba to Galvez,
St. Louis, July 11, 1778, American Historical Review, Oct., 1935, pp- 94-96.

35 John Todd to Thomas Jefferson, Lexington, Jan. 24, 1781, Calendar of Virginia State
Papers, I (Richmond, 1875), 460.

36 Arthur Clinton Boggess, The Settlement of Illinois, 1778-1830 ( Chicago Historical So-
ciety's Collections, V, Chicago, 1908), 25-26. Rogers and his Light Dragoons were transferred to
Kaskaskia and were there as late as Jan., 1781. Alvord, Kaskaskia Records, 212.

CHARLES E. PETERSON

207

in Paris and boasting an acquaintance with other American war
leaders, he represented himself as an agent of the King of
France. He was received with enthusiasm by the French and
more or less ignored by Colonel Montgomery. In a great
address to the habitants Colonel La Balme recalled their com-
mon origin, deplored the knavery of the Virginians, recalled
the cruel use of hostile Indians by the British, and urged his
new friends to rally round him to make an attack on Detroit.
"I am ready to shed my blood in your behalf,”37 declared the
Colonel, and he seemed to promise a happy and victorious re-
turn to the ancien regime. About eighty French and Indians
joined him and marched off on October 3, under the French

flag-38

As a part of this campaign Cahokia sent out a raiding party
of sixteen men under the half-breed Jean Baptiste Hamelin.
This was equipped with pack horses and timed to arrive at the
trading post of St. Joseph’s just when the local Indians had left
on their first hunt of the season. Only an old chief and his fam-
ily remained. The Cahokians overcame the traders at the post
and, loading fifty bales of merchandise on their horses, started
for home.

But the triumph was short-lived. A party of British sym-
pathizing Indians was raised for the pursuit, and Hamelin was
overtaken at a place called the Petit Fort on December 5. The
Cahokians refused to surrender and were badly beaten — four
killed, two wounded, and seven taken prisoner. Three escaped

37 La Balme was particularly bitter against the Virginians. His speech on this subject
even questioned their right to be in the Illinois country:

“It is well that you be informed, gentlemen, that the troops of the State of Virginia have
come here against the will of the other states of America, as I learned from the members of
Congress, even before my departure from Philadelphia, and that the different deputies who
compose the said Congress are ignorant of the revolting proceedings and acts of violence, not
only to be blamed but to be condemned before the tribunals of the whole world, which these
troops are practicing against you.’’ Address of La Balme, Sept. 17, 1780. Alvord, Kaskaskia
Records, 182-83-

Richard Winston wrote of La Balme “I look upon him to be a Mai Content much dis-
gusted with the Virginian yet I must say he done some good, he Pacified the Indians, he was
received by the Inhabitants as the Hebrews would receive the Messiah.’’ Winston to John
Todd, Kaskaskia, Oct. 17, 1780, Alvord, Kaskaskia Records, 195-96.

*8 Alvord, Cahokia Records, xc-xcii.

208

NOTES ON OLD CAHOKIA

in the thick woods.39 The main force of the expedition had met
defeat a month earlier with La Balme himself and thirty or
forty of his men killed near the village of the Miami Indians.40
This bitter loss spelled the collapse of the short-lived hopes of
the French.

With help from Spanish St. Louis a successful reprisal
was made in the middle of the winter. Twenty Cahokians were
in the party which again sacked St. Joseph.41 This seems to have
been the last military action of the Revolutionary War in which
Cahokia participated.

John Rogers, back in Harrodsburg in April, 1781, re-
ported the Illinois country to be "in an absolute State of Rebel-
lion.”42 The fort at the mouth of the Ohio was evacuated in
June and after the American victory at Yorktown in October
only a few agents were left at Cahokia and her neighbors "for
the purpose of Intelligence.”43 In January, 1783, on the settle-
ment of the peace, the Illinois Regiment was finally disbanded.
It had played an important part in winning America’s war
of independence and Cahokia had done much to make it pos-
sible.

39 Arent S. De Peyster to Frederick Haldimand, Detroit, Jan. 8, 1781, Michigan Pioneer
and Historical Society Collections , X: 450-51. Sinclair to Mathews, Island of Michilimackinac,
Feb. 23, 1781, ibid. , IX: 629. John Reynolds, The Pioneer History of Illinois (Belleville, 111.,
1852), 67-69.

McCarty wrote of the defeat of “a party of 17 men from Cahos to St. Josephs, they took
the place. Great Quantity of Goods, 22 prisrs, and behaved as wisely as the others, and were
defeated, all killed or taken Except three have made their Escape.” McCarty to Slaughter,
Jan. 27, 1781, Calendar of Virginia State Papers, I: 465-

40 James, Life of George Rogers Clark, 215. De Peyster to Haldimand, Detroit, Nov. 16,
1780, Michigan Pioneer and Historical Society Collections, X : 448. According to Richard Winston,
La Balme got about fifty volunteers at Kaskaskia and Cahokia. Winston to Todd, Kaskaskia,
Oct. 24, 1780, Calendar of Virginia State Papers, I: 381.

41 McCarty to John Slaughter, Jan. 27, 1781, Calendar of Virginia State Papers, I: 465-
Sec also James, Life of George Rogers Clark, 220-21 . For a contemporary Spanish account of this
exploit, see Nasatir, Jour. III. State Hist. Soc., Oct., 1928, pp. 343-50. The party was led by
Eugenio Pouree and Charles Tayon. It left St. Louis Jan. 2, 1781, raised the Spanish flag at
St. Joseph on Feb. 12, destroyed military stores and departed, suffering no casualties. Accord-
ing to one apologist, the attacking party arrived “at a time that all the Indians were yet at
their hunt, excepting a few young men who were not sufficient to oppose one hundred white
People and Eighty Indians.” Speech of Assimut, Detroit, Mar. 11, 1781, Michigan Pioneer and
Historical Society Collections , X : 453- The Cahokia group seems to have been led by M. Trottier.

42 Rogers to Jefferson, Harrodsburg, Apr. 29, 1781, James, Clark Papers, 546.

43 Clark to the Governor of Virginia, Feb. 18, 1782, Calendar of Virginia State Papers,
III: 68.

WHO MADE THE FINGERPRINTS?

In 1948 the State Historical Li-
brary purchased what appeared to
be a fingerprint of Abraham Lin-
coln’s— probably the only one
known (Fig. A). News of this
acquisition appeared in the press,
and William Steiger, a former resi-
dent of Springfield, Illinois, pro-
duced two more (Fig. B) which had
every appearance of genuineness.
Now, Mr. James Christensen, finger-
print expert for the State Bureau of
Criminal Identification and Investi-
gation, after carefully examining
and photographing both prints
states that they were probably not
made by the same person. Mr.
Christensen is not positive about
this as all the prints are imperfect,
but the width of the ridges on the
Steiger print do not seem similar to
those on the Historical Library
print when both are magnified. An

examination of the inks under vari-
ous infra-rays indicates that they
are identical. The date of the
Steiger print is September 10, 1864,
and the Library’s fingerprint is on
a note dated February 17, 1865-
They then appear to be contempo-
rary— but which is Lincoln’s and
which was made by someone else
in his office?

A brief history of each document
bearing these fingerprints may help
clear up this mystery. The Steiger
prints appear on a blank sheet of
paper that contains nothing else
but the signature, “A Lincoln.”
This sheet of paper was sent by
Gustavus A. Matile, during the
Civil War, to S. N. Holmes, an
autograph collector. Matile had
been born in Switzerland in 1807.
Educated in law at Berlin and
Heidelberg, he had taught law and

209

210

LINCOLNIANA

Fingerprint in the Historical Library (Fig. A.)

become a judge when the revolu-
tions of 1848 made him decide to
come to America. Here he was a
professor of law at Princeton, then
of French at the University of Penn-
sylvania. In 1864 he was a secre-
tary for Abraham Lincoln, men-
tioned briefly in John Hay’s diary.
Matile himself, in a letter to
Holmes, written before he sent the
fingerprints, stated: “I may not

remain in public office very long,
for I find that my experience in law
matters is getting rusty.” In spite
of these misgivings Matile’s legal
knowledge must have continued to
corrode for, although he left Lin-
coln’s office, he was employed as
a translator in the Interior Depart-
ment at the time of his death in
1881.

Matile, as has been said, accom-
pained the autograph of Lincoln’s
that he sent to Holmes with a letter
which stated: ‘‘The finger marks on
the paper are also his [Lincoln’s].

Steiger Prints (Fig. B.)

LINCOLNIANA

211

Matile's Version of the Lincoln Fingerprints

212

LINCOLNIANA

They will do as the olden times
seals that were made by impressing
the thumb on the wax.”

This appears to be the best of evi-
dence but there is one thing ques-
tionable about it. Both prints seem
to have been made by the person
who folded the paper. Take a piece
of paper and fold it for an envelope
and you will notice that your first
or second finger falls where the bot-
tom print appears (Fig. B) and the
upper fingerprint may well be made
by your thumb as you turn over the
top of the page. Now Matile, not
Lincoln, was probably the man
who folded the page for insertion
in his letter. On the other hand, if
these are his fingerprints he must
have opened the sheet after once
folding it or he would not have
seen the fingerprints. It is perhaps
beside the point to note that Matile
was a man of fifty-seven whose best
days were over and who seems to
have been dreaming at times about
earlier achievements in the law.

Now let us examine the finger-
print at the State Historical Li-
brary. This was obviously made
by the writer’s left hand or by the
right hand of a clerk who may have

taken it from Lincoln when he
signed it. At first glance it might :
appear that there had been a blot ;
in the word “let” and someone —
either Lincoln or his clerk — picked ;
up the letter, pressing his finger on
this blot. This, however, does not
seem to be the case. Again, I ask :
you to try it. If you put your
thumb on a drop of ink you will
not make a fingerprint. But if after
putting your finger on a drop of ink I
you lift it and put it down again,
then you will make a print. The
print, then, must have been made
by a finger which was inky before
touching the paper. Whether Lin- :
coin picked up this paper with an
inky hand or whether it was han-
dled by a clerk is hard to determine. ;
Note, however, that this print is i
splayed as by a scar and that it was ii
made by the left thumb of the j
writer. Remember, too, that Lin-
coln’s left thumb carried a scar;
which he received as a wood chop- j
per.

Now list the evidence on both ;
sides and decide for yourself which jj
is Lincoln’s fingerprint. Frankly,’
this writer does not know.

JAY MONAGHAN

Editors’ Note: Since the above article was written we have re-j
ceived word of another Lincoln fingerprint discovered in California. j
When complete details about it are available they will be reported in
this Journal.

THREE HARDSCRABBLE SCRIBES

The following letters, recently given to the Illinois State Historical
1 Library by Peter Rizzo, of Streator, Illinois, were found by him in 1938.

As a boy he was an avid stamp collector and while diligently searching
i through a rubbish heap at the Streator city dump he came across these
|| manuscripts. All three are apparently written home to Streator, then
familiarly known as “Hardscrabble.”

The letters, while not unusual, add just a bit more contemporary,

[ authentic detail on the pioneers — particularly the one dated in 1860 (un-
fortunately unsigned) describing the thousands of settlers pouring into
t “new braskey” and on west.

The third letter, from Elmer Ramey, pictures the beauties of the
Cimarron River bottoms. This letter is dated July 16, 1886. In 1887 the

I squatters and cattlemen in the region sought to organize this country into

II Cimarron Territory. Their proposal to Congress was referred to the Com-
, mittee on Territories where it remained. The area now constitutes the

panhandle of Oklahoma.

Spelling, punctuation, and capitalization have not been changed.

June the 18th

1860

!■ Direct to glenwood
mills county

IOWA

I Dear brother and sister

we are now campt in the great
! State of new braskey about 4 miles
< from Omaha we crosed the Mi-
ll soury river on Sunday the 17 of june

II we are all well as usual we had

some good times and some hard
times but take it all to gether we
had a no 1 time the river is about 1
mile wide and a mity Swift runing
river as for work i dont no wether
we will get any or not but we will
soon find out i am 8 pounds hevier
than i was when i started so much
for robing henroosts and garden
sass i had no idea of seeing so many
emigrants evry good camping spot

213

214

HISTORICAL NOTES

is blocked with them put them in
one string and they wood reach
from here to Scrabble new braskey
is a nice a looking country as a man
need to want the misouria hills
along the river are almost moun-
tains there is some mity nice cities
on the road devenport city is a
beautiful city and iowa city and
Desmoine city and council bluffs
city are all nice cityes omaha city
is about the sise of otawa a great
deal of bisness done of all kinds
there is thousands of teams cross-
ing the plains they pay $20 a
month for drivers but i dont think
i will go for that money i dont
see wheare so many people
come from every sinse i got up this
morning they have been mostly ox
teams no diferance which way you
look you can see plenty emigrants
in camp but there is room for mil-
lions more good prarie land far as
far as you can see with a Telascope
some of the land is pretty flat the
only dificulty here there is hardly
any timber corn is 40 cts coal is
$1 25 cts a bushel in omaha that is
a little higher than scrable coal
June 22 Well jo i will finish my
letter i have seen all i want to in
new braskey there is no work to be
had hare there is somany there now
they cant half get work i am in
iowa now doing well me and ed-
ward and oliver Stuert are all work-
ing for the same man in mills coun-
ty iowa

Direct to glenwood mills county
iowa only 20 miles from misouria
we ware all together last sonday
night we are well scatterd now lit-
tle john has gone across the planes
and ham Stewart and his wife has
Started back to Scrable

well jo i want you to write to me
and let me no what i have drawn in
that lottery and let me no what

they are a doing about that farm of i
mothers write me a good letter as i
for me i dont no when i will see
home for as soon as i get a good
chanse and good wages i will cross '
the planes there was 200 teames ;
went through this city day before J
yesterday

August the 18 the 1864
Dear brother i hasten to answer !
your kind letter that i have just re- ;
ceived and am glad to hear from
you your letter found me in good j
health mother is well as usual i got |
a letter from george a few days ago
he is well and hearty when he j
wrote he said he had been 72 days |
on the battle feild marching and f
fiting all the time there was 108 n
men killed in his rigiment at one j|
battle in 15 minits he said you must ;
write to him direct to Chatenuga ;
Tennessee i was to a picnic yester-
day i took that little inglish gal t
and had a jolly old time Well jo i
got your letter just in time for in j
less than 24 hours i wood have been jj
at your door but as you are a going ;(
to be from home i hardly think ile I
come just yet but if i dont come be-
fore long i cant come till winter !:
Well jo your letter has cought me
without much money this time the t
man i am working for has bought
him a farm in the south part of this
state and started yesterday him and |i
his woman to pay for it and put in j
some rye and fall wheet but if i had :
got your letter one day sooner i
could have Sent you your desire he j
took four Thousand dollars with !
him and he owes me upwards of
$50 Well jo i am glad to hear that
hard Scrable is weaned and got to |
growing i want you to look out
for a good job of diging coal for j
you and me for i have nothing to
hinder me from comeing next win-

HISTORICAL NOTES

215

ter and working with you get evry
thing ready you may look for me
over the first of septembr for if i
dont come then i cant come till the
first of december for my time is not
out till then i will write to my boss
■ and see if i can get any money be-
[ cause he is not a going to be at
j! home for 5 weeks and when i come
over i will bring you the rest i dont
\ want you to think that i have got
it to spare and wont send it for that
is not my principle mother and su-
san and all the folks wood like to
[see you and the generals Well jo i
j will have to close you may look for
me ove by the 10 of Sept if i come
I at all

Answer my letter amediatly.
.Still remaining your affectionate
brother

Alfred H. Ramey

Joseph H. Ramey

J Ramey

Englewood July 16th / 86
1 Dear Parents — I will try and —
j write you a few lines once more &
j let you know I was in the land of
the living & good health. I am at
present on the Cimerone [Cimar-
ron] River bottoms, 5 miles from
the town where I will mail this
letter I have been down in Texas
once and I am going back now. I
have 640 acres of land in the State
of texas and 160 in the newtral

strip, & one Hundred and twenty in
barber County Kas making 920 in
all and I guess that will be enough
for Ramey. I suppose you will have
a talk with Charles before you get
this letter, and I expect he will give
this countery a bad name and me to
but dont you believe him for it is
not so for he just fooled his place
away and then spent the money do
not tell him I told you any thing
about him. by the way I give
Charlie a Photo of myself Cabinet
size to give you, if he dose not
bring it to you go and get it. for I
have not got any more. I am going
to keep sending you folks my pic-
ture and maybe you will send me
some of yours in the course of a
year or two more. I have been all
over the west went in a wagon and
the wind and sun has made me as
black as a Spaniard several people
have taken me for one but that will
come off in the sweet by & by I
wish you folks [line illegible] and
get another section I know you
would make more money than you
have made in a life time. I do not
suppose you think so, I have about
4 or 5 hundred acres of land

on my section, and the prettiest
stream you ever saw in some places
it is 25 and 30 feet deep and just
full of Black Bass from 2 to 8 lbs.
address Elmer Ramey Newtral City
Newtral strip Via Englewood Kans

TRUE DEMOCRATIC PRINCIPLES IN EGYPT

After the fall of Vicksburg I proceeded to Mound City, Illinois, to
superintend affairs on the Tennessee and Cumberland Rivers, and to in-;
crease the size of the Mississippi squadron, which had diminished in num-!
bers since the commencement of the siege. . . .

The surgeon of the fleet, Dr. P., was one of the cleverest of men per-;
sonally and professionally, and afforded a fresh illustration of the old say-|
ing that the most valuable goods are generally put up in the smallest!
packages. The fleet-surgeon was of a social disposition, and a favorite
with everybody, but woe to any one who ran counter to him on the sub-
ject of rank, or invaded what he considered his rights. He would get out^
his brace of Derringers, and whoever had affronted him must make the:
amende honorable or fight. . . .

Mound City, where the naval station was situated, is in that part!
of Illinois known as “Egypt,” and the condition of the rural population'
in that quarter was rather primitive.

“A great Democratic meeting” was to be held on a certain day a
few miles from Mound City, and the little doctor resolved to be present.
He therefore provided himself with a speech, borrowed a racing mare
from me, and, clothed in his uniform, set out for the scene of action.

There was a large assemblage of persons of the genuine peanut-and-
molasses-candy stripe, and, when the fleet-surgeon hove in sight on his
racing mare, he was received with loud applause.

Speaking was fairly under way at the time, and a blood-and-thunder
orator was laying down what he affirmed to be the true principles of

216

ILLINOIS SCRAPBOOK

217

Democracy, when the doctor interrupted him, calling out, “You don’t
know what Democracy means as laid down by Thomas Jefferson!’’

“Who in thunder are you?” said the orator. “You’re too small a
man to be a Democrat; we want fellows big enough to vote.”

The doctor felt for his pistol, but, fortunately, he had left it on ship-
board, so, shaking his fist at the orator, he sang out, “Wait till I get the
floor, and I will strip off all your borrowed plumes and show you up in
your true colors!”

“Let the little fellow speak!” cried out a dozen voices; “let’s hear
fiwhat true Democratic principles are,” and a large man picked the doctor
up and dumped him upon the platform.

“There, now, my little man,” said his bearer, “let’s hear a true
exposition of Democratic principles. You ain’t much to look at, but I’ll
bet you know more about Democracy than any one in this crowd.”

The doctor did not require any urging; such an opportunity did not
occur every day, and he at once commenced his speech :

“Fellow-citizens! you see before you a man who has never failed to
maintain the true principles of Democracy under all circumstances — ”

“Louder! louder!” shouted the crowd; “let’s see the little man.
He’s got a heap of wisdom inside that brass-bound coat of his! Who is
he, anyhow? Tom Thumb! Daniel Lambert!” and so on, until the doctor
grew quite bewildered.

An empty hogshead was brought forward and the doctor placed
thereon, in order that he might be visible to his audience.

“Now go ahead!” they shouted; “don’t be bashful; don’t be afraid;
nobody will hurt you!”

“If I had my pistols here I’d show you who’s afraid,” said the sur-
geon, whose dander was now up. At which the crowd gave him three
cheers that made the welkin ring.

The doctor soon regained his composure, and commenced again,
“Fellow-citizens! you see before you — ” and suddenly the head of the
(hogshead gave way and the orator disappeared from view.

He was fished out mad as a hornet, while the crowd shouted: “Get
another hogshead! lift him on your shoulders! let’s hear all about the
true Democratic principles,” etc. But the doctor had seen enough of
these wild cats, as he called them, and would not say another word. He
mounted his mare and started for home, a sadder and wiser man than
when he left it.

Just after he was fairly under way a large man on horseback, in the
uniform of a colonel, overtook him and entered into conversation, and
they jogged along quite pleasantly.

218

ILLINOIS SCRAPBOOK

Pretty soon there was a clattering of horses’ hoofs behind them, and ,
they beheld the blood-and-thunder orator, mounted on a big roan horse,
coming at a dead run and shouting like mad.

Both the mare and the colonel’s horse pricked up their ears and j
became so restless that it required the utmost exertions of their riders to
hold them. The orator, as he came up, gave the doctor’s mare a sharp;
cut with his whip, singing out, “Come on, little man, let’s see if you can
ride as well as you can talk!’’

The, mare started as if shot from a gun, the colonel’s horse started1
after the mare, and all three dashed off at a rate of speed that would have1
distanced John Gilpin.

Crowds of people were met along the road, all going to the Demo-;
cratic meeting, and all drew out of the way to let the racers go by.

The doctor’s trousers had worked up above his knees, displaying his;
red flannel drawers in all their beauty, and the wayfarers shouted lustily,!
“Go it, little red-legs!’’ “Go it, Colonel!’’ “Go it, Bully Bludger!’’

Suddenly a bridge hove in sight which the soldiers were repairing.;
They had removed the planks from one side, leaving a narrow passage for!
travelers. The mare took the lead, never deviating from a straight course,;
and with a flying leap cleared the opening; but, alas! for the little doctor;!]
he lost his seat and fell plump into the swamp! The other riders, more;:
fortunate or more expert in the management of their steeds, kept the side
road and went flying on after the mare, which, relieved of the weight of!
her rider, ran faster than ever, and reached the gangway of the Black
Hawk covered with foam.

The doctor had eight miles to walk, his uniform was covered with
mud, and altogether he was so battered that his friends would hardly
have recognized him.

Next day I sent for him to come and dine with me, and he appeared,
looking as neat as usual.

In the course of conversation I remarked, “How are politics getting
along nowadays?’’

The doctor looked at me suspiciously. “Well, sir,’’ he replied, “I
have come to the conclusion that politics in Egypt are a farce; they are
whisky politics altogether. I haven’t seen a man in this county who un-
derstands Democratic principles as laid down by Jefferson; in fact, I don’t
think they are understood anywhere outside of Maryland; but, sir, if
you’ll sell me that mare of yours I’ll promise to give up politics alto-
gether.’’ Then the doctor told me the whole story of his escapade, for
he couldn’t keep anything from me to save his life.

david d. porter, Incidents and Anecdotes of the
Civil War (New York, 1885), 201-2; 205-8.

ILLINOIS SCRAPBOOK

219

LEE COUNTY PIONEER LIFE

About one-half mile from Zachariah Melugin’s my father built his
house (of one room) of unhewed logs, as did all the settlers, the spaces
between the logs were filled with small pieces of wood, then plastered
'over with mortar made of clay, the roof and floor boards were obtained
by splitting trees. Shelves for dishes, etc., were made by boring holes in
the logs, driving in long pins, and laying a board across the pins.

The fireplace warmed the room, and there the cooking was done;
'cooking utensils were very scarce, the bread was baked in iron kettles
having iron covers, the kettle being placed in one side of the fireplace and
[completely covered with live coals and hot ashes, potatoes were also
[roasted in the ashes.

Gourds were used for baskets, basins, cups, dippers, soap dishes,
[etc. Hollow trees cut in suitable lengths were used for well curbs, bee
hives, and for storing the vegetables and grain. Large trees were hol-
. lowed out into troughs and placed under the eaves to catch the rain water,
in sugar making to hold the sap; small troughs were used to knead the
bread in, and some of the babies slept in cradles made of troughs. Father
made butter bowl, ladle, rolling pin, brooms and other articles of wood,
for use in the house. All this was done by hand, and with rude imple-
ments; he also mended his harness, and was cobbler for his own family,
keeping their shoes in repair.

Some families had no timepiece, they told the time during the day
by the sun — had a noon mark in a door or window — at night by the posi-
tion of the stars in the Great Dipper in the north. For want of looking
glasses, when they wished to see how their hair was dressed, they looked
in the well or watertrough. Some of the early settlers were very destitute
I — the children having but one dress apiece, made of unbleached muslin,
[; colored with butternut bark — the mother washed and ironed their cloth-
. ing while they were in bed.

her’s first house was one story and had but the one room, with
in one end, door in the other, windows in opposite sides of the
room. The windows were small, having but one sash each, containing
I six panes of glass. The fireplace was made of such rocks as they could
pick up, filled in with mortar made of clay; the chimney was built from
the ground up, on the outside of the house, and with sticks filled in and
plastered over with mortar. The door was made of such boards as they
could split from the trees, and was hung on wooden hinges, and had
wooden latches — the hinges and latches were made with the pocket knife.
The latch had at one end a string (I presume of buckskin) attached to it,

fireplace

220

ILLINOIS SCRAPBOOK

the other end passed through a hole in the door over the latch — when;
they wished to secure their house at night they pulled in the latchstring. !

Father had a compass and when he built his house he placed it with
the points of the compass, then at noon the sun shone straight in the door
or window. In that way they obtained the “noon mark.” Mother hadj
.several marks in the first house, to mark the different hours.

They made their own brooms by taking straight young hickory!
trees, perhaps three inches through, peeling off the bark, then with their;
pocket knives they commenced on the end of the stick they intended for
the brush part and peeled the stick in narrow strips or splints about oneJ
sixteenth of an inch thick, and fifteen to eighteen inches long. The heart1
of the stick would not peel and that was cut off, leaving a stick about;
three inches long in the center of these splints. The splints being dropped
hack over this stick, then they commenced on the handle end and stripped!
splints toward those already made, and long enough to cover them, when;
the stick was stripped small enough for the handle, the splints were all !
tied together around the stick left in the center of the splints first stripped,;
the remainder of the handle was then stripped to complete the handle.

They guarded their fire carefully, for they had no matches, and if!
their fire went out they had to kindle with flint and steel, or go to a
neighbor and borrow fire.

Mother was better fitted for pioneer life than some of the settlers.!
She knew all about spinning, weaving, knitting, coloring, making sugar,!
butter, candles and soap, and the use of a fireplace for cooking, all of!
which were new to some of them. She spun, colored, wove, cut and madeij
our woolen clothing and blankets, also her own linen for house use and;
garments for the family, and spun her linen thread for sewing. She often!
.spoke of the hardships of others, but very seldom of her own.

amelia g. mcfarland, in : Recollections of
the Pioneers of Lee County (1893), 185-86.

PRAIRIE TOURISTS

From Chicago, we made an excursion into the prairies. Our young
lawyer-friend threw behind him the five hundred dollars per day which
he was making, and went with us. I thought him wise; for there is that
to be had in the wilderness which money cannot buy. We drove out oi
town at ten o’clock in the morning, too late by two hours; but it was im-
possible to overcome the introductions to strangers, and the bustle of out
preparations, any sooner. Our party consisted of seven, besides the driver.
Our vehicle was a wagon with four horses.

ILLINOIS SCRAPBOOK

221

We had first to cross the prairie, nine miles wide, on the lake edge
>f which Chicago stands. This prairie is not usually wet so early in the
ear; but at this time the water stood up almost to the nave of the wheels :
nd we crossed it at a walking pace. I saw here, for the first time in the
Jnited States, the American primrose. It grew in profusion over the
vhole prairie, as far as I could see; not so large and fine as in English
greenhouses, but graceful and pretty. I now found the truth of what I
l,iad read about the difficulty of distinguishing distances on a prairie. The
I eeling is quite bewildering. A man walking near looks like a goliath a
jnile off. I mistook a covered wagon without horses, at a distance of fift;y
:rards, for a white house near the horizon: and so on.

We were not sorry to reach the belt of trees, which bounded the
,wamp we had passed. At a house here, where we stopped to water the
torses, and eat dough nuts, we saw a crowd of emigrants; which showed
>hat we had not yet reached the bounds of civilisation. A little further
bn we came to the river Aux Plaines,1 spelled on a sign board “Oplain.”
ffhe ferry here is a monopoly, and the public suffers accordingly. There
|s only one small flat boat for the service of the concourse of people now
pouring into the prairies. Though we happened to arrive nearly the first
>f the crowd of today, we were detained on the bank above an hour; and
hen our horses went over at two crossings, and the wagon and ourselves
(it the third. It was a pretty scene, if we had not been in a hurry; the
ountry wagons and teams in the wood by the side of the quiet clear
[jiver; and the oxen swimming over, yoked, with only their patient faces
pisible above the surface. After crossing, we proceeded briskly till we
[reached a single house, where, or nowhere, we were to dine. The kind
,iostess bestirred herself to provide us a good dinner of tea, bread, ham,
Potatoes, and strawberries, of which a whole pailful, ripe and sweet, had
been gathered by the children in the grass round the house, within one
lour. While dinner was preparing, we amused ourselves with looking
over an excellent small collection of books, belonging to Miss Cynthia,
he daughter of the hostess.

I never saw insulation, (not desolation,) to compare with the situa-
ion of a settler on a wide prairie. A single house in the middle of Salis-
)ury Plain would be desolate. A single house on a prairie has clumps of
rees near it, rich fields about it; and flowers, strawberries, and running
vater at hand. But when I saw a settler’s child tripping out of home-
xxmds, I had a feeling that it would never get back again. It looked like
putting out into Lake Michigan in a canoe. The soil round the dwellings

Des Plaines River.

222

ILLINOIS SCRAPBOOK

is very rich. It makes no dust, it is so entirely vegetable. It requires!
merely to be once turned over to produce largely; and, at present, it ap-i
pears to be inexhaustible. As we proceeded, the scenery became more and)
more like what all travellers compare it to, — a boundless English park.
The grass was wilder, the occasional footpath not so trim, and the single:
trees less majestic; but no park ever displayed anything equal to the
grouping of the trees within the windings of the blue, brimming river
Aux Plaines.

We had met with so many delays that we felt doubts about reaching
the place where we had intended to spend the night. At sunset, we found
ourselves still nine miles from Joliet; but we were told that the road wast
good except a small “slew” or two; and there was half a moon shining
behind a thin veil of clouds; so we pushed on. We seemed latterly to be
travelling on a terrace overlooking a wide champaign, where a dark wav-
ing line might indicate the winding of the river, between its clumpy
banks. Our driver descended, and went forward, two or three times, td
make sure of our road; and at length, we rattled down a steep descent and
found ourselves among houses.

This was not our resting-place, however. The Joliet hotel lay orj
the other side of the river. We were directed to a foot-bridge by which
we were to pass; and a ford below for the wagon. We strained our eye<!
in vain for the foot-bridge; and our gentlemen peeped and pryed about
for some time. All was still but the rippling river, and everybody asleejj
in the houses that were scattered about. We ladies were presently sum
moned to put on our water-proof shoes, and alight. A man showed him j
self who had risen from his bed to help us in our need. The foot-bridgd
consisted, for some way, of two planks with a hand-rail on one side: but
when we were about a third of the way over, one half of the planks, anc|
the hand-rail, had disappeared. We actually had to cross the rushing)
deep river on a line of single planks, by dim moonlight, at past eleveij
o’clock at night. The great anxiety was about Charley2; but between hi;
father and the guide, he managed very well. This guide would accepji
nothing but thanks. He “did not calculate to take any pay.”

Then we waited some time for the wagon to come up from the ford
I suspected it had passed the spot where we stood, and had proceeded d
the village, where we saw a twinkling light, now disappearing, and nov
re-appearing. It was so, and the driver came back to look for us, and tel
us that the light we saw was a signal from the hotel-keeper, whom w
found standing on his door-step, and sheltering his candle with his hand
We sat down and drank milk in the bar, while he went to consult wit]

2 Charles Follen, son of Dr. Charles Follen.

ILLINOIS SCRAPBOOK

223

mis wife what was to be done with us, as every bed in the house was oc-
cupied. We, meanwhile, agreed that the time was now come for us to
enjoy an adventure which we had often anticipated; sleeping in a barn.
We had all declared ourselves anxious to sleep in a barn, if we could meet
with one that was air-tight, and well-supplied with hay. Such a barn
was actually on these premises. We were prevented, however, from all
.practising the freak by the prompt hospitality of our hostess. Before we
knew what she was about, she had risen and dressed herself, put clean
i sheets on her own bed, and made up two others on the floor of the same
iroom; so that the ladies and Charley were luxuriously accommodated.
Two sleepy personages crawled downstairs to offer their beds to our gen-
tlemen. Mr. L.3 and our Chicago friend, however, persisted in sleeping
in the barn.

Next morning, we all gave a very gratifying report of our lodgings.
When we made our acknowledgments to our hostess, she said she thought
fthat people who could go to bed quietly every night ought to be ready to
give up to tired travellers. Whenever she travels, I hope she will be
treated as she treated us. She let us have breakfast as early as half-past
five, the next morning, and gave Charley a bun at parting, lest he should
be too hungry before we could dine.

Harriet martineau, Society

in America (1837), I: 355-61.

IT’S THE TRUTH— WITH PROOF

About 1815 a man named John Pond opened a clearing in what is
;now Indian Creek Township. In a few years he had neighbors, and the
community was called the “Pond Settlement.’’ One day in October Pond
:was called away from home to help some newcomer raise a cabin. He left
‘his wife and two little boys at home, and was absent all day. On return-
ing at night he found his wife killed and scalped in the cabin, and his two
little boys scalped and lying in the corner made by the old-fashioned
, stick-and-mud chimney joining the cabin wall. All three were lying in
pools of blood which had poured from their ghastly wounds. Pond lost
Ino time in calling on his neighbors, and before midnight a pursuing party
of vengeance was formed. It was learned that three Indians of the Pe-
anke-shaw tribe had been skulking about the settlement; and as this tribe
was then living out in the western part of the State, in the vicinity of the
Okaw (Kaskaskia) River and Big Muddy Creek, the chase promised to
be a long one.

3 Ellis Gray Loring.

224

ILLINOIS SCRAPBOOK

Three men — Pond, Hosea Pearce and Trousdale — were the party of
men who proposed to have retribution. They were well mounted while,
the Indians were on foot. From indications it appeared that the killing,
had been done in the morning; and as this pursuing party could not start
until the following morning, the Indians had twenty hours start. The;
trail was found by noticing the disturbed condition of the wild pea-vines ;
in the little prairie westward. With eager heart and piercing eye the men
pushed forward. The woods in those days were open underneath, there ij
being but little underbrush, and the pursuers soon reached the Okaw. I
On the prairies the grass grew high, and a fugitive could be easily fol-
lowed through them.

Not, however, until the fourth day did the party discover a “fresh;1
sign. ’ ’ The next morning at sunrise they found in the Okaw Bottom three;:
Indians making their breakfast off a wild turkey. Each white man picked i
out his Indian, and fired at him. One of the guns missed fire; two Indians ■
fell dead. They hunted for the other Indian all day, but failed to find j
him, as he made for the river and they lost his track. The white party, i
therefore, had to return to their homes with their vengeance but partially!
satisfied.

A few years later the white population around Mr. Pond became;
too dense for him, and he moved farther west. The incident of the massa-i
ere and the pursuit faded away from the memories of old settlers, amid !
the bustle of the in-coming civilization. But years afterward still, when)
one of the actors in the foregoing scene, Hosea Pearce, had become an old |
man, he, too, felt that the country was becoming too thickly settled for!
his comfort, and emigrated to Western Missouri, where lands were cheap, j
of which he could obtain a plenty for the “boys.” One of Trousdale’s
sons was with him. These two were away from home one day, and at j
night stopped at the house of a middle-aged man, living on a fine and well-j
furnished farm. After supper, in the course of conversation, the host as- 1
certained the county where Pearce formerly lived.

“Do you know any one in the Pond Settlement?” inquired the host.j

“Why, that is right where I lived,” replied Pearce.

“Did you ever know John Pond?”

“Yes, sir.”

This started Pearce to talking, and [he] told all about Pond and the
killing of his wife and boys, the pursuit, etc. Pearce was an interesting
narrator, and he told the story as vividly as the facts would allow. Then
the man said; “Well, stranger, I reckon that story is about as true as any
you ever told.” And as he said this he stepped to the high mantel-shelf
on which stood a clock; this he opened and took out a little parcel wrap-

ILLINOIS SCRAPBOOK

225

ped in whitish paper that showed the marks of age and much careful hand-
ling. While he was doing this Pearce was getting mad at the doubt
thrown on his veracity by the words of the man, who, as he stood slowly
: opening the little parcel and noticing the change in Pearce’s countenance,

. said: “Now don’t get excited at what I said. I only meant it to prove
what I am going to show you is true.’’ By this time he had taken from
. the paper a little tuft of flaxen hair which seemed to be grown from a piece
of skin the size of a dollar. As he held it up he said. “Here is the scalp of
one of John Pond’s boys’’; and bowing down his head and parting the
• hair from the crown, revealing a shining bald scar, and placing his finger
; on the spot, he added, “and there is where it came from!’’

Old Hosea had forgotten that while both boys had been scalped,

; only one was killed, although both were left for dead. He had forgotten,
too, that among the trophies of the dead Indians the things most highly
prized by Pond were his boys’ scalps, which he recovered.

History of White County , Illi-
nois (Chicago, 1883), 293-95.

EDUCATION

A man is well educated who has
learnt what is useful to him in the
condition of life in which he is to
live. It is just as absurd to teach
children what is useless to them, as
a knowledge of optics would be to
a man born blind. Dr. Franklin
tells us of an Indian chief in Penn.

; to whom a society had made a propo-
| sition to educate Indian youths in
college. ‘ ‘Brothers, ’ ’ said the chief,
“we thank you for proposing to
| educate our papooses. You mean
well, and wish to do us good, but

we think they had better stay with
us. We can hunt and fish better
than you and will teach them our-
selves.’’ Was not the Indian right?
To a man who is destined to live as
the indians do, the learning which
the chief proposed is worth more
than all that could be acquired in a
college. (Records of the Illinois
State Lyceum — MSS in the John
Russell Collection, Illinois State
Historical Library. Russell May
Have Written This But There Is
No Proof.)

The Mystery of “ A Public Man." By Frank Maloy Anderson. (University ;
of Minnesota Press: Minneapolis, 1948. Pp. 256. $3-75.)

Frank Maloy Anderson has at last established the authorship of The \
Diary of a Public Man. The publishers claim this work is a historical detec- ■
tive story. It is all of that and much more. The Diary of a Public Man , :
covering the secession winter of 1860-1861 was first published in the North
American Review during 1879. The editor of the Review, Allen Thorndike
Rice, stated that the author was “a public man intimately connected j
with the public movement of those dark and troubled times.” Since its
first publication the Diary has been heavily drawn upon by many scholars;
of the Civil War and particularly by those interested in Abraham Lincoln;
and the men who surrounded him. Within the last few years interest in |
the Diary has become so pronounced that two book editions of it have;
appeared. In neither of these was authorship determined. Anderson’s <
work, which does establish authorship beyond reasonable doubt, is,
therefore, a welcome volume.

Professor Anderson became interested in the Diary and in the un-
known diarist in 1913- Since that time he has pursued the task of estab-
lishing authorship with tenacity and assiduity. No clue in the Diary and;
no guess of scholars who had worked on its authorship was too insignifi-l
cant for him to examine. In this compact little volume he tells the full}
story. He sets forth the criteria by means of which authorship might be
established from internal evidence. Then he applies these criteria to con-;'
gressmen, senators, and public men of every description. He shows in
turn why one after another of these men had to be rejected as authors of
the Diary. Some readers will find the constant repetition of the criteria
boring. The impatient will undoubtedly skip much that is in the early

226

BOOK REVIEWS

227

; chapters of this book. Such readers will lose thereby, for Professor Ander-
| son not only lays bare his fine historical method but also inserts many
| superbly drawn vignettes of the public men considered and rejected and
{!. tells many amusing incidents of his quest. For both the layman and the
( student learning to investigate historical data these chapters are invalu-
I able. If the work had no other merit it would be significant for this
i reason.

Inherent in the problem of authorship is, of course, the authenticity
[ of the Public Man’s observations as entries in a diary. Applying the cri-
r.teria already used to establish or reject authorship, Professor Anderson,
L in three fine chapters, shows his reasons for rejecting the Diary's genuine-
j ness as well as why Sam Ward, king of the lobby, was the so-called diarist.

His conclusion speaks for itself:

I am thoroughly convinced that the Diary, as published in the North
|j American Review in 1879, is not what it purports to be. It is not a genuine
I diary actually kept in 1860-1861. It is, on the contrary, in part genuine
? and in part fictitious. It includes as a core a genuine diary, probably
I, rather meager, actually kept by Sam Ward at Washington during the
I Secession Winter of 1860-1861. Attached to this genuine core there is a
I; large amount of embellishment added at a later date. This added incre-
[ ment is in part recollection and in part pure invention. The genuine core,

II the recollection, and the invention have all been skillfully blended with
: a polished literary style.

This immediately raises the question : has the usefulness of The Diary
l of a Public Man been destroyed? As a diary, the answer is emphatically
. ‘ ‘yes. ’ ’ As the reminiscences of a clever and acute observer of public affairs
r who was incomparably witty and possessed of marked literary skill, the
I! Diary will always be useful — for it reflects the spirit of the time and shows
I: the matured observation concerning Mr. Lincoln and many other public
: , men of a man who knew many of them intimately.

Illinois College. joe patterson smith.

j Lincoln and the Bible. By Clarence Edward Macartney. (Abingdon-Cokes-
bury Press, New York, 1949, Pp. 96. $1.25.)

“If a public man were to quote the Bible today as frequently as Lin-
J coin did in Civil War days, he would be charged with cant or hypocrisy,”
says Clarence Edward Macartney, the well-known Pittsburgh preacher in
his little book, Lincoln and the Bible.

It is quite probable that a contemporary Bible-quoter would also
find himself talking in riddles to most of the population since Biblical al-
lusions are lost on the majority of American people.

228

BOOK REVIEWS

But Lincoln could safely quote and be understood, and his seventy- j
seven quotations from or references to Scripture are taken from twenty- •
two of the thirty-six books, mostly from the Gospels.

That Honest Abe knew his Bible goes without argument. But what
he thought of it and how sincerely he believed its message is a moot point. ;
Macartney gives credence to the legend that Lincoln ‘ ‘was on his way to !
make a public confession of his faith in Christ when the assassin’s bullet
put an end to his probation.” At the same time he indicates that the ;
Martyr President never gave assent to the distinctive thing in the faith
which, according to this author, makes one a Christian, ‘‘a consciousness ,
of sin and a trust in the atoning and redeeming work of Christ on the j
cross.” However, Macartney accepts Bateman’s quotation from Lincoln
as saying: ‘‘I know I am right because I know that liberty is right, for ;
Christ teaches it, and Christ is God.”

This little book of ninety some pages can be read in an hour. It is
printed attractively, with wide margins next to the binding and para- |
graph guides in the margins.

Springfield. richard paul graebel.

Two Judges of Ottawa. By Wayne C. Townley. (Egypt Book House, Car- 1
bondale, 111., 1948. Pp. 43.)

Wayne C. Townley, of Bloomington, president of the McLean Coun- j
ty Historical Society, past president and present director of the Illinois
State Historical Society, has written and unusual forty-three-page book
entitled Two Judges of Ottawa. The jurists are Theophilus Lyle Dickey
(1811-1885) and John Dean Caton (1812-1895).

In this unique volume the author has achieved a warm appeal to j
layman and professional alike. And he has incorporated a fascinating
early history of Ottawa, Illinois, once known as Carbonia. His style has
the charm of good fiction and his book fairly shouts the potentials of
American opportunity, for both Dickey and Caton rose from poverty.

Judge Caton served on the Illinois Supreme Court from 1842 to 1864.
Judge Dickey’s tenure was from 1875 to 1885- Both served in the old
Northern Grand Division and both were personal friends of Abraham
Lincoln’s, some of whose many Supreme Court appeals were heard by
Judge Caton. In constitutional interpretation and the establishing of
judicial precedent Caton served Illinois much as John Marshall did the
nation.

Dickey was a native of Kentucky, Caton of New York. The former
moved to Ottawa in 1839, the latter in 1842. Business acumen enabled

BOOK REVIEWS

229

both men to amass substantial property holdings before they died, albeit
reverses plagued them along the way. Caton’s eventual industrial in-
terests were especially extensive.

Two Judges of Ottawa treats engagingly of national connections and
influences which stemmed from the Dickey, Caton, and related Ottawa
families of a century ago. There are entertaining incidents which reveal
• the sturdy, rugged honesty and individualism of the two judges. The
book is intensely interesting. The author paints enchanting word por-
traits throughout and leaves his reader possessed of a desire to go to
Ottawa, visit surviving landmarks, and relive the period. The book
would be profitable reading for every American.

Springfield. earle benjamin searcy.

The University of Wisconsin. A History , 1848-192 ; (Volume One). By Merle
Curti and Vernon Carstensen. (University of Wisconsin Press:
Madison, 1949. Pp. xviii, 739. $6.00.)

Two members of the history department of the University of Wis-
consin have undertaken to produce the definitive history of their school.
They have limited themselves to the period ending in 1923, thus wisely
avoiding the difficult if not impossible task of dealing objectively with
current issues and personalities on the Madison campus. This first volume,
which brings the story down to 1903, is a work of notable scholarship for
which the authors are to be congratulated. All students of the develop-
ment of higher education in the United States are in their debt, particu-
larly for the first chapter on “The Origins of the State University Idea.”
This chapter places state universities in proper relationship to higher edu-
cation in general, and points out clearly the secular objective behind their
founding.

The authors note that “the concept of the state university was more
fully realized in the West during the half century after the Revolution”
than in the East because of the rivalry of religious sects, with no one sect
being in a dominant position. The importance of the grant of federal land
in promoting state universities is demonstrated. Wisconsin was typical
in this respect. The congressional authorization of two townships of land
(over 46,000 acres) in 1838 supplied the financial basis for the establish-
ment of the University of Wisconsin on July 26, 1848, as provided by the
state constitution adopted that year.

In tracing the history of the school for its first fifty-five years the
authors recount the troubles and triumphs of two chancellors and five
presidents. President John Bascom (1874-1887) served longer than any

230

BOOK REVIEWS

other, and is generally recognized as the pioneer of the “Wisconsin Idea”
that a state university should accept the obligation to promote the well- : I
being of the people of the state through assistance rendered by its experts
to public administrators. Two chapters are devoted to Bascom, a liberal,
champion of social and economic justice, who was “a dominant influence
in the intellectual life of the students” and was himself “an outstanding
personality, and accomplished scholar.” Paul A. Chadbourne (1867- '
1870), Thomas C. Chamberlin (1887-1892), and Charles Kendall Adams;
(1892-1902) also gave effective leadership to the university.

Historians and social scientists will appreciate the adequate recog-!
nition given to the outstanding social scientists who came to Madison,!
particularly Frederick Jackson Turner (1889-1910), American historian;;;
Charles H. Haskins (1890-1902), medievalist; and Richard T. Ely (1892-
1925), economist — all brought from Johns Hopkins by President Chamber-ji
lin. The importance of Professor Ely’s School of Economics, Politicall
Science and History (1892-1900) and Professor Turner’s School of History!;
(established 1900) in the development of research and graduate study in
the field of the social sciences is emphasized.

In 1894, at a time of economic unrest and labor disputes, Professor
Ely was accused by a member of the Board of Regents of being a dangerous;!
radical. After an extended investigation the Board exonerated Ely, andi
adopted a forthright statement in behalf of academic freedom which is
as timely in 1949 as it was in 1894. The authors fittingly dedicate the
book to “that staunch Board of Regents” who held:

We cannot . . . believe that knowledge has reached its final goal, orj
that the present condition of society is perfect. ... In all lines of academic
investigation it is of the utmost importance that the investigator should,
be absolutely free to follow the indications of truth wherever they may
lead. . . we believe the great state University of Wisconsin should ever en-j>
courage that continual and fearless sifting and winnowing by which alone
the truth can be found.

The second and final volume is awaited with anticipatory relish. Ii
it maintains the high standard of the first the history of the University oi
Wisconsin will be recorded in a manner surpassed by no other school.

Eastern Illinois State College. Charles h. coleman. j

The Earth is Ours. By Marion Pedersen Teal. (Thomas Y. Crowell Co.
New York, 1948. Pp. 205. $2.75.)

Here is a charmingly written book on Illinois farm life. Ray anc
Marion Teal had jobs in New York, one in an insurance company and th<

BOOK REVIEWS

231

other at Macy’s. They also had a baby son, David, and 230 acres of Illi-
nois farm land covered by a $7,000 mortgage.

The jangling crowds in Times Square made the couple long for coun-
try stillness, a soft lawn, and chirping crickets. For some months after
David’s arrival the walls in their apartment kept closing in. Ray sharp-
i ened his pencil and figured the possible income on the farm. The prospect
f was not veIT good. The land had paid only the mortgage interest and a
I tenant’s share in the past but Ray and Marion decided to return to the
I soil. Ray took with him an M. A. degree in agricultural economics while
I; Marion took some morning-glory seeds.

Of course, Marion took much more than morning-glory seeds back
r to the old farm in 1941. She took courage, a sense of humor and an out-
I standing ability for writing. Lincoln enthusiasts will enjoy the memories
I of the Rail Splitter that the young couple found on a neighboring farm.
’The Teals also found a refreshing reference to Adlai Stevenson, the elder.

> Yes, this book is highly recommended as relaxation reading for those who
know — or want to know — rural Illinois.

J. M.

I Pioneer Railroad: The Story of the Chicago and North Western System. By
Robert J. Casey and W. A. S. Douglas. (Whittlesey House:
New York, 1948. Pp. 334. $4.00.)

Books by Robert J. Casey and/or W. A. S. Douglas are coming off
(the presses at such a rapid rate that it is sometimes difficult for a quarterly
1 magazine to keep up with them. And this one offers a further complica-
tion because the research was done by John Drury, who also has had two
(’books published within the past year —Old Illinois Rouses and Midwest
j Heritage.

Although the reader can almost pick out the parts each of the three
has contributed this does not mean that their book is erratic or that some
sections are better than others. The final writing was the work of one
man, Douglas, and he has done his usual very competent job.

The founding and the early years of the North Western appear as
the story of William Butler Ogden, first mayor of Chicago, which is as it
.should be. The idea of building a railroad to the farming country west
md north of Chicago was his. But he had more than an idea, he had the
perseverance to see his idea through. He financed his road by selling bonds
o the farmers in its territory and he built only when he had the cash in
jiand to pay for the job. Thus his Galena and Chicago Union Rail Road
?rew and was able to absorb those little lines that had been built from

232

BOOK REVIEWS

nowhere to nowhere whenever their promoters thought they saw an I j
opportunity for a quick profit.

Into this story of the North Western’s growing pains the authors i
have woven incidents and personalities that provide a contrast for the j
average reader. Besides Ogden the other great builder of the road was j
Marvin Hughitt, who was president from 1887 to 1910, during the sys- j
tern’s period of greatest growth. And the North Western had its heroine, I
too. She was Kate Shelley, the fifteen-year-old girl who saved the Mid-1 1
night Express when the Honey Creek (Iowa) bridge was washed out in a i
storm in 1881. Then there was the great capital fight in South Dakota,; )
the development of gold mining, and President Coolidge’s summer in theil
Black Hills. A slightly unfortunate note is the chapter on the great' I
blizzard of 1888, which loses much of its impressiveness when compared!
with the winter of 1948-1949.

In keeping with the book’s title the North Western has many pio-; j
neering “firsts” to its credit: first steel rails, first railway post-office serv-1
ice, first dining cars and sleeping cars west of Chicago, and first to operate!
by telegraph. Also, it has made many contributions to the development;!
of railway safety and has established a notable safety record of its own.

But with all their painstaking research the authors do not solve the
riddle that puzzles everyone the first time he rides the North Western: why!
do the trains run on the left-hand instead of the right-hand tracks like!
other American railroads? They are inclined to the theory that the whole!
thing was an accident — but still they admit there may be something tcjl
the British-influence school of thought. And there the matter rests.

H. F. R. }

Adventure in Enterprise : The Story of Leaton Irwin and the Company He Foundedm
By Anna B. Grubb. (Irwin Paper Company: Quincy, Illinoisjl
1947. Pp. 75.)

Although the author of this handsome little book is listed as AnnJI
B. Grubb most of it is quoted from earlier writings of her subject, Leatoi! I
Irwin. She has added a minimum of her own writing to his autobio| j
graphical notes, letters, and speeches, and newspaper articles about himj I

The book itself was published to celebrate the sixtieth anniversary! j
in 1947, of the founding of the Irwin Paper Company in Quincy (it novj |
has branches in Decatur and Peoria). This was two years after the deatl J
of Irwin. Although the paper company was his principal interest, LeatoijM
Irwin was a versatile businessman. His other activities included the pro*
motion of a hardware manufacturing business that later became the AcmJ|
Steel Company, starting a company that makes laboratory coats and rain 1

BOOK REVIEWS

233

coats, organizing an air compressor manufacturing firm, and operating a
three-branch automobile agency for a number of years.

Since it was intended as a souvenir or good-will gift the book an-
swers its purpose. However, it will be of little value to anyone not ac-
quainted with the subject or the “company he founded.” h. f. r.

The Public Parks of Freeport, Illinois. Compiled and Edited by Mabel God-
dard. (Freeport, 1948. Pp. 102. $1.00.)

Those cities which are just beginning their park development pro-
grams could do worse than to adopt this volume as a guidebook. The
editor has searched out the details of Freeport’s parks from the very be-
ginning and she gives each step along with the names of all the public-
spirited citizens involved — also she outlines plans for the future. Her text
is supplemented by more than thirty photographs, most of them scenic,
but several are historical. Among the latter are pictures of Theodore
Roosevelt addressing the Railway Men’s Picnic on September 8, 1910, and
the crowd of 50,000 who attended the unveiling of Freeport’s statue of
Lincoln. Incidentally, proceeds from the sale of the book will go to the
Boy Scout and Girl Scout organizations, the cost of publication having
been underwritten by Robert F. Koenig, park commissioner and former
president of the park board. h. f. r.

Lincoln Raises an Army. By Don Russell. (The Civil War Round Table:
Chicago, 1948. Pp. 15.)

Packed with names, dates, and numbers this little pamphlet tells a
story that usually requires several volumes. Among the many handicaps
that beset Lincoln at the outbreak of the War were these: (1) his own
lack of a military background, (2) the fact that the Regular Army num-
bered only 16,376 men, (3) every company of infantry, dragoons, mounted
riflemen, and cavalry was stationed west of the Mississippi River on Janu-
ary 1, 1861, (4) a large number of the officers had grown too old for service
but had not retired, (5) many officers from the Southern states resigned,
and (6) the law provided only three-months enlistments for the militia.
These were not all but they give an idea of the enormity of the problem.

This will be a handy pamphlet for use as an introduction to the sub-
ject or as a quick reference. But anyone interested in Lincoln or the Civil
War will also require a more pretentious work. h. f. r.

234

BOOK REVIEWS

Sifting the Herndon Sources. By Louis A. Warren. (Lincoln Fellowship of
Southern California, Los Angeles, 1948. Pp. 19 [4].)

On February 12, 1948, Dr. Louis A. Warren spoke before the Lincoln I
Fellowship of Southern California. This handsome brochure, with a fore- i
word by Ralph G. Lindstrom, of Los Angeles, contains the printed ver- j
sion of his speech.

Dr. Warren painstakingly builds up his thesis that Herndon is an 1
unreliable source of information about Lincoln. Herndon’s faults and 1
foibles are spread before us again. However, historians generally agree ;|
that with all his faults Herndon sincerely meant to tell the truth. That J
he did not, always, is a fact the reader must keep in mind.

No two people see another in the same light. The truth about Lin- \
coin can never be told exactly. It was known only to Lincoln. But in \
approaching the true portrait we cannot ignore the impressions of one ; i
who was intimately acquainted with Lincoln for many years. The com- j
posite picture of the way he impressed Herndon and the way he impressed -
others who knew him, plus the facts about what he said and did, is as ;
close as we can come to a true portrait of Lincoln.

It is well to sift the Herndon sources, and they must be appraised j
through a knowledge of Herndon, himself. Here David Donald has done -
Lincoln students a real service. His readable and scholarly Lincoln’ s i
Herndon will help to an understanding of this enigmatic personality.

Constructive Government in Ohio. The Story of the Administration of Myers Y.

Cooper. By Harvey Walker. (The Ohio History Press: Colum-
bus, 1948. Pp. 249. $3.00.)

In this second volume of the Ohio Governors Series Dr. Walker is con-1:
cerned almost entirely with the two-year administration of Myers Y.
Cooper, fifty-first governor of Ohio (1929-1930). Mr. Cooper had not held
elective public office before becoming governor and his career since has
not been particularly in the public eye.

Because of the economic depression, the achievements of Governor i
Cooper’s administration have been obscured. It seems most unfortunate!
that his term came at the precise time that it did — to be swept out so soon
by the depression. Governor Cooper is a businessman who wanted to run
the state on sound business principles. He made definite progress in many
departments under his jurisdiction. This book, the author states, “is an
effort to make an objective appraisal of the accomplishments of one of the

BOOK REVIEWS

235

most constructive periods in Ohio political history, one which reflects
much credit upon those who labored in it.”

The author, professor of political science at Ohio State University,
is well qualified for his task. He was superintendent of the budget for the
Estate during Cooper’s administration. Budget reform was one of the Gov-
ernor’s constructive accomplishments.

Also during Cooper’s administration the site was chosen for, and
£work begun on the handsome state office building in Columbus. The view
of this structure and the beautiful civic center help compensate the east-
ibound driver on U. S. 40 for the exasperations of city traffic when travel-
ing through Columbus.

Everett Walters wrote his biography of Joseph Benson Foraker (Vol.
I of the Ohio Governors Series ) i'n as detached a fashion as possible. Dr.
Walker has doubtless tried to be objective. That he has not entirely suc-
ceeded is not surprising. As a part of the Cooper administration and a
f personal friend of the Governor’s he knew what was being attempted and
hhe opposition encountered. He could not remain neutral. But this does
not detract from the book’s value — rather it makes the volume a live text
instead of a dead, theoretical study. The book should be of great value

[to political science classes in state government. s. a. w.

I Walked With a Poet. By John Snigg. (The Vachel Lindsay Association,
1948? Pp. 4.)

It would be hard to imagine a more beautiful tribute to a friend than
.this brief and appealing account by John Snigg of his walks with Vachel
V Lindsay. Every Lindsay lover will want to read it, as should all who love
beautiful writing. Although they are prose, these words of remembrance
reveal the soul of a poet in John Snigg, himself.

Tramping the prairie roads around Springfield, the two companions
talked, and many of these informal conversations John Snigg still holds
in memory. One day in the autum of 1931 after they had been strolling
through Oak Ridge Cemetery in Springfield, Vachel said as they parted,

• “John, we shall walk again.” But they never did.

A man who can write these beautiful lines in remembrance of one
dead now these eighteen years has never really lost his friend. And, per-
haps, in John Snigg, Vachel still walks the streets of his beloved Spring-
field. s. a. w.

236

BOOK REVIEWS

The Parish of the Holy Family , Cahokia , Illinois , 1699-1949. By Joseph P.

Donnelly. (Cahokia Anniversary Association: East St. Louis,

1949- Pp. 62 [2] $1.00.)

This year marks the 250th anniversary of the founding of Cahokia.
The story of the 250-year old Parish of the Holy Family is practically I
synonymous with the history of the village. As Father Donnelly says in
the foreword, “in the shadow of its church aborigines became Christians,
Frenchmen became Americans, and Americans became Catholics. . . . The
Parish his a really great story to tell.”

The booklet is well documented for those who may care to enlarge
their knowledge of the vicissitudes of Cahokia and the Illinois country.
Only the high lights of the chronicle of the ancient parish are told. In
fact, these alone are known. The long, intimate relations of the parish:
and its parishioners are familiar only to the souls of those whose lives:
were influenced by this little church.

A well rounded picture of Cahokia and its parish may be obtained'
from this booklet and from the articles by Charles E. Peterson, “Notes on
Old Cahokia,” which are appearing in the March, June, and September!
issues of this Journal. s. a. w.

The Early History of Northern Illinois. By Charles Knapp Carpenter. (Pub-i
lished by the Ogle County Federation of Women’s Clubs, Mount
Morris, 111., 1948. Pp. 144. $1.50.)

This attractive little book seems often to stray pretty far from the:
history of northern Illinois. Section B, however, from page sixty-three
to the end, confines itself to the area in question. This part deals chiefly
with the Kellogg Trail, the Crane’s Grove settlement, and Abraham Lin-;
coin’s appearance in Freeport. And the area of northern Illinois with)
which it is concerned is principally in Ogle and Stephenson counties.

Had it not been for Oliver W. Kellogg, John Phelps, Thomas Crane,
and others who first made trails through the wilderness, the settlement
of northern Illinois would be quite different. The author’s ancesters were
pioneers in this beautiful part of the state near Crane’s Grove, and he,
himself, lives there today.

Charles Knapp Carpenter writes well and has produced a very read-
able book He is sincerely and justly concerned with the wanton destruc-
tion of our natural resources and with the “isms” that threaten our demo-i
cratic way of life.

s. a. w.

BOOK REVIEWS

237

John Reynolds, “The Old Ranger ’ of Illinois, 1788-1865. By Josephine Louise
Harper. (An abstract of a thesis, Urbana, 111., 1949. Pp. 20.)

The name of John Reynolds deserves to be better known to Illinois-
ans. Governor of the state (1830-1834), Representative in Congress from
1 :1834 to 1837 and from 1839 to 1843, and twice elected to the General As-
i sembly, he has not merited the obscurity that has befallen him.

Reynolds’ principal misfortune was in being a sincere proslavery
badvocate. His outspoken remarks during the Civil War cast a shadow of
1 1 disloyalty upon him, until death brought his release in May, 1863. Then
Ihis political opponents “dismissed him into obscurity.”

Doubtless this abstract of a thesis, submitted in partial fulfillment
[of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in history at
[the University of Illinois, is minus some of the color and life that one
■would expect to find in a portrayal of this unusual Illinoisan. At any rate,.
Ithe sample makes the reader want to know more about John Reynolds,.
:[the individualist.

Miss Harper, who did her graduate work at the University of Illi-
jnois, has been, since January, 1948, Manuscript Librarian of the State
Historical Society of Wisconsin at Madison. s. a. w.

CAHOKIA AND THE SPRING TOUR

Old Cahokia, where the modern Midwest had its beginnings two1
and a half centuries ago, was the center of attraction for approximately;
150 members of the Illinois State Historical Society and their guests on!
May 20 and 21. The occasion was the Society’s annual Spring Tour which;
had been arranged to coincide with Cahokia’s two-hundred and fiftieth^
annivarsary celebration.

The Society’s round of activities began Friday afternoon when early;
arrivals at the headquarters hotel, the Broadview, in East St. Louis were
given a conducted tour, complete with police escort, to the Cahokia;
Mounds State Park. John F. Hogan, custodian of the park, acted as their;
guide and they inspected the archaeological museum and climbed to the
top of Monks’ Mound for a view of the American Bottoms.

The Spring Dinner in the grand ballroom of the Broadview on Friday
evening opened the formal program. After the singing of “Illinois” Dr. :
Dwight F. Clark, of Evanston, president of the Illinois State Historical
Society, introduced Mrs. William H. Matlack, of East St. Louis, president!
of the Cahokia 250th Anniversary Association, and Irving Dilliard, ofj
Collinsville, past president of the Society and chairman of the Spring
Tour Committee. John Francis McDermott, author of Old Cahokia : A
Narrative and Documents Illustrating the First Century of Its History , gave aj
brief sketch of his book and Harold G. Baker, former United States Dis-I
trict Attorney and speaker for the dinner, described East St. Louis and its
past.

Immediately following the dinner the members attended a his-

238

NEWS AND COMMENT

239

orical pageant, “The Story of Cahokia.’’ This colorful outdoor show
began with a scene in a Cahokia Indian village in the autumn of 1698
tnd concluded with the arrival of George Rogers Clark in 1778. The
:oming of the Quebec missionaries in 1699, a village wedding, and eight-
eenth century singing and dancing were some of the high lights of the
performance. Kiowa Indians from Oklahoma City and Boy Scout Indian
lancers from the East St. Louis area added dash and color to the pageant,
which was directed by Bernard Ferguson.

Early Saturday morning four chartered busses and several auto-
i nobiles left the headquarters hotel for an all-day tour of historic points
—Cahokia and on down the Mississippi River to Fort de Chartres, Prairie
jlu Rocher, Kaskaskia, Menard, Chester, and back by way of Belleville.
At Cahokia the group saw the famous courthouse, oldest building in the
Vlidwest, inspected restoration work at the Holy Family Catholic Church,
:ind some members even rang the old church bell, which was cast in 1776.
Also, the nuns of the church opened the old Nicholas Jarrot mansion for
the visitors.

At Prairie du Rocher and Fort de Chartres, Thomas Connor acted as
guide. On going through the town he sounded his horn in front of each
louse over a hundred years old, and the party stopped to see the Abraham
Lee mansion and the Old Creole House, and excellent example of French
:olonial architecture. At Fort de Chartres State Park, the location of
what was once called “the most commodious and best built fort in North
.America,” the members saw the old powder magazine, the reconstructed
guardhouse and chapel, and the museum. At the park, also, they were
the guests of Mr. Connor at a picnic luncheon served by members of the
] St. Joseph’s Church at Prairie du Rocher.

In the afternoon the party proceeded to Kaskaskia State Park where
State Historian J. Monaghan took over as the guide. He outlined the
history of the old fort and town and contrasted the communities of Kas-
kaskia and Cahokia. Members also saw the Garrison Hill Cemetery and
idle near-by grave of Illinois’ first Lieutenant Governor, Pierre Menard,
jin which a floral tribute was placed by Mary E. Moyer, a member of the
Qlinois State Historical Library staff. At the Menard home, which was
constructed in 1802, they saw an unusually well preserved mansion, stone
kitchen, and slave quarters.

On the return trip the party got a glimpse of the Southern Illinois
State Penitentiary at Menard and the Shadrach Bond monument at Ches-
ter. The final stop of the outing was at the home of Governor John Reyn-
olds at Belleville, where the fourth chief executive did much of the writ-
ing on the early history of Illinois, for which he is so well known.

240

NEWS AND COMMENT

The picture on the front cover of this issue is from the collection of
the Chicago Historical Society and it shows Fort Dearborn as it appeared j
in 1820. Since Jean Baptiste Beaubien took up permanent residence near
the Reservation in 1817 it is possible that the house to the south (left) of
the Fort was one of his homes (see “The Beaubien Claim,” page 147).

TRIBUTE TO LINCOLN, IN SPANISH

The Historical Library is indebted to Walter M. Provine, of Taylor- a
ville, for a “Tribute to Lincoln” by Raphael A. Sanchez. The library has ft
both the printed copy of this address in Spanish, Tribute a Lincoln , and the
original, typewritten manuscript copy signed by the author.

Raphael A. Sanchez delivered this speech on Lincoln in Santo Do- ;f
mingo, in April, 1946, before the House and Senate in joint session. It
is doubtful if any other copies of this address exist in this country. Surely I
the typed and signed manuscript is unique. Mr. Pro vine received it from )
James C. ScarfF, of South Charleston, Ohio, a long-time resident of the J
Dominican Republic, and personally acquainted with Mr. Sanchez.

Dr. Mary Watters, of the library’s staff, has translated the manu- si
script into English.

V AND ALIA RESTORATION

The Department of Public Works and Buildings invites offerings fori
immediate cash purchase of authentic period office furniture and furnish- 1
ings for the interior restoration of the Third State House, Vandalia, Illi-i
nois. Articles needed include: tables, desks, chairs, washstands, stoves j
and wood boxes, carpets, lamps, lighting fixtures, and writing materials j,
for the period, 1836-1838. Address proposals to Department of Public!
Works and Buildings of the State of Illinois, C. Herrick Hammond, Super-; I
vising Architect, 160 North La Salle Street, Chicago, Illinois.

Once again Chicago is to have its Railroad Fair, from June 23 to
October 2. A special attraction this year, according to Major Lenox R.
Lohr, fair president, is an old Canadian railway coach, said to be the

NEWS AND COMMENT

241

eldest railway passenger coach in North America. The car was built in
London and shipped to America in 1838. It will be used in this year’s
Dageant, “Wheels-a-Rolling.” Visitors may also ride in a cable car from
5an Francisco.

The formal opening of the Lincoln Room in the Carl Sandburg Cot-
tage, Galesburg, was held on May 30. Jay Monaghan spoke as the official
[representative of Governor Adlai E. Stevenson. The ceremonies were to
have been held on February 12, but inclement weather and the desire to
have an outdoor ceremony postponed the event.

This room is the last one completed in the rebuilding of the cottage
by the Carl Sandburg Association. It contains many treasured articles
of the Lincoln era.

The St. Louis Historical Documents Foundation announces the pub-
lication of Old Cahokia : A Narrative and Documents Illustrating the First
Century of its History. It is edited by John Francis McDermott, assisted by
(Joseph P. Donnelly, S. J., Rose Josephine Boylan, Brenda R. Gieseker,
Charles van Ravenswaay, and Irving Dilliard. The book, of approxi-
mately 330 pages and ten illustrations, sells for $3.00 paper bound, or
$4.50 cloth bound. Anyone wishing to obtain a copy should write to
John Francis McDermott, 6345 Westminster Place, St. Louis 5, Missouri.

On February 12, 1849, a charter was granted to a group of Aurora
citizens to build the Aurora Branch Railroad, a twelve-mile line, to con-
nect with the Galena and Chicago Union. From that small beginning
! grew the present Burlington system which represents the amalgamation
of over two hundred separate railroad companies. Based on the issuance
its first charter, the Chicago Burlington & Quincy Railroad Company is
one hundred years old this year.

A vigorous defense of the American way of life was made by Scerial
Thompson at the Elizabethtown Woman’s Club on February 15- Mr.
Thompson, Harrisburg attorney, president of the Southern Illinois His-

242

NEWS AND COMMENT

torical Society, and a director of the Illinois State Historical Society, urged
that Americans take pride in their country’s history and in the rugged
men and women who established this nation. Trends in the past two
decades necessitate that we take a determined stand for democracy, he
said. Mr. Thompson advocated the establishment of a historical society
in every county to stimulate the interest of Americans in their history and
forbears.

Harry Picknell, son of Mr. and Mrs. P. G. Picknell, of Decatur,
writes of seeing Robert Sherwood’s play Abe Lincoln in Illinois presented
in Paris on Lincoln’s birthday. Produced under the title of “If I Live’’
the play was a fitting recognition of the Emancipator’s birthday. Mr.
Picknell’s letter to his parents is reproduced, in part, in the Decatur |
Herald-Review for February 20, 1949.

The Alton Area Historical Society, a branch of the Madison County i
Historical Society, heard Mrs. Frank J. Stobbs, in February, give the story |
of the Lincoln portrait that is owned by ShurtlefF College. This picture, ;
painted by Alban Jasper Conant, is also known as “the smiling Lincoln.” ;
It has had a checkered history. Paul B. Cousley spoke on Lincoln’s asso-i
ciations with Alton and Alton people.

In March Miss Louise Travous talked on “Renewing the Youth of ;
Our History,” and Miss Ella Davis spoke on “The Alton Horticultural
Society.”

The Aurora Historical Society elected Vernon Derry to honorary
membership in the Society in recognition of his photographic slides of
the museum exhibits.

Clarence R. Smith, professor of physics at Aurora College and direc-
tor of the Aurora Historical Society’s Museum, was honored by the Cos-
mopolitan Club of Aurora in February. A public dinner was given in his
honor, and the club presented Professor Smith its Distinguished Service
Award for 1948. Clarence R. Smith identified and prepared for exhibit
the mastodon bones found in Aurora’s Phillips Park.

NEWS AND COMMENT

243

Officers of the Chicago Lawn Historical Society are: Richard O.
Helwig, president; Mrs. Elmer H. Bowlby, vice-president; Mrs. F. J.
Richards, honorary president; Mrs. B. J. Glidewell, treasurer; Miss Helga
Nielsen, secretary-historian. Directors are: Mrs.*Anna Kunkle, Howard
; Crane, Mrs. Charles N. King, Miss Marie Mortell, and Mrs. Leonard
Kemp.

At a meeting in February of the South Shore (Chicago) Historical
• Society Joseph Miller and his barber shop quartet entertained the group.
J. Wesley Blades presided.

Interesting exhibits have been featured at the Chicago Historical
L Society in recent months. In February the original letter of Abraham
Lincoln to Major General Joseph Hooker was displayed. This letter was
I purchased by the present owner, Mr. Alfred W. Stern, for $15,000, and
j through his courtesy it was publicly exhibited.

In commemoration of the Bowman Dairy Company’s seventy-fifth
‘ anniversary there was a special dairy exhibit, showing, among other
|l things, the evolution of the milk bottle and a history of the Holstein
[ cow.

“Chicago in Pictures,’’ a collection of seventy-four historic prints
I; donated by the late Joseph T. Ryerson, was on display in the recently
‘opened Chicago Room.

In April the Society had a special exhibit of four of the nation’s his-
toric events occurring in that month. They were George Washington’s in-
auguration, Paul Revere ’s Ride, General Lee’s surrender, and Lincoln’s
assassination.

Sami

Stage performers of years gone by attended the West Side (Chicago)
Historical Society’s March meeting. Songs of 1900 and talks on early
moving picture theaters and stock companies were the special attractions
on the program.

Miss Alice Bradshaw spoke on “Reminiscences of Old Vincennes’’
at the April meeting of the Edwards County Historical Society. She de-

244

NEWS AND COMMENT

scribed the landmarks of Vincennes and gave sketches of those who ;
played an important part in its history.

James F. Hardy presided over the business session at which the j
group voted to place membership in the Society at fifty cents a year to
those of school age. Regular membership is $1.00 a year.

Walter Burt Adams’ oil painting of Fountain Square (before the old
fountain was removed and the square modernized) is an addition to the
Evanston Historical Society’s collection of paintings of historical homes
and landmarks. Mr. Adams presented his picture to the Society. Mrs.
Henry B. Roney is curator of the museum.

Dr. Winston H. Tucker, Evanston commissioner of health, spoke
on “Food Sanitation’’ at the Society’s April meeting. Colored slides,
posters, and pamphlets illustrated his lecture.

Denver McDonald read a paper on the life of Louis L. Emmerson at
the March meeting of the Jefferson County Historical Society. Mrs. Edna
Casey, president, presided at the meeting. Reports were given by Mildred
Warren, secretary, and Frank Walker, treasurer.

Officers of the Kankakee County Historical Society are: Ralph
Francis, president; Len H. Small, first vice-president; J. C. Bohmker, sec-
ond vice-president; Mrs. Fannie Still, secretary and curator; Gilbert Hertz,
treasurer. New members of the board of directors include: Herman Snow,
Harold Simmons, Mrs. Harry Yeates, Mrs. Richard Ferris, Miss Dorothy
Brown, Orson Burdick, and Mrs. W. M. Kimmelshue. Re-elected board
members are: L. O. Minor, Edwin P. Bergeron, Will C. Schneider, Roy
Wilcox, Mrs. C. M. Clay Buntain, and George W. Lane.

At the Society’s February meeting old-fashioned songs were sung
by a chorus from the Business and Professional Women’s Club. Society
members and friends were offered a preview of a new exhibit in the His-
torical and Arts Building. This was the McKee collection of historic
scenes in Illinois and was lent by the Public Service Company of Northern
Illinois. There was also a new display of local pictures and objects deal-
ing with early life on the Kankakee River.

NEWS AND COMMENT

245

The speaker at the April 12 meeting of the Lake County Historical
Society was the late Lloyd Lewis who talked on “Allan Pinkerton, the
Great Detective.” The meeting was held in Lois Durand Hall at Lake
Forest College.

The Mattoon Historical Society held its annual spring dinner meet-
ing in April. Dr. Robert Bell Browne was the speaker. His topic was
“Lincoln and the Civil War Generals.” Alex Summers is president of the
■'group and had general charge of arrangements.

Officers of the Morgan County Historical Society are: Dr. Clarence
P. McClelland, president; Frank J. Heinl, vice-president; Miss Elizabeth
Brooks, treasurer; and Miss Fidelia N. Abbott, secretary. Directors, in
i addition to the officers, include: Miss Margaret Kay Moore, Dr. Alfred
• J. Henderson, Dr. John S. Wright, and the Rev. Arthur Ewert.

Rodney Howe Brandon spoke at the Society’s April 26 dinner meet-
ing in the Dunlap Hotel in Jacksonville. At this meeting the Society
< celebrated the one hundred and twenty-fourth birthday of Jacksonville
| and the centennial of the school for the blind. Winners in the Society’s
ij essay contest for high school students and seventh and eighth grade pupils
[ were announced at this meeting. High school winners are: Joan Harber,
(first prize; Betty Jess, second prize; Merna Dickerson, honorable mention.
IjGrade school winners are: Alice Mary Crabtree, first prize; David Olson,
pecond prize; and Mary Whalin, honorable mention.

At the February meeting of the Oak Park Historical Society the
[.Illinois Bell Telephone Company presented a program and film entitled
“The Telephone Hour.” J. C. Miller gave a history of telephone service
in the village.

Dr. Reid T. Milner spoke to the Peoria Historical Society in Febru-
ary on “The First Ten Years at the Northern Regional Research Labora-
tory.’’ He described the work of the laboratory and told of its contribu-
tions to the war effort, agriculture, and industry.

246

NEWS AND COMMENT

In March, Ernest E. East talked about the letters to Lincoln from
Peorians which are included in the Robert Todd Lincoln collection in the
Library of Congress. Harry T. Morgan also spoke about Dr. Robert Boal,
of Lacon. Mr. Morgan owns two letters written by the Emancipator to
Dr. Boal.

“The Life and Work of Robert Ingersoll’’ was the subject of George
E. Johnson’s speech before the Society in April.

The Riverside Historical Society at its February session heard J. C.
Miller give his popular illustrated lecture on the Illinois and Michigan
Canal.

Officers of the Society elected at this meeting are: Miss Josephine
Sherman, president; Schofield B. Gross, vice-president; Dr. S. S. Fuller,
treasurer; Mrs. E. H. Bangs, secretary; and Mrs. Frank H. Landon,
Howard Olson, and Miss Margaret Blakely, directors.

A resolution was adopted at this meeting requesting the Riverside
grade school board of education to name the new school on Leesley Road
in honor of Flavilla Anne Forbes, first school teacher in the area now
known as Riverside.

Representatives from the Rock Island County Historical Society met
early this year with a committee from the Rock Island County Forest
Preserve Commission to discuss plans for the construction of a Rock
Island County Historical Museum. A subcommittee has been appointed
to review the plan presented. Location of a site, administration, and
legal aspects of the museum-library are among the topics for further con-
sideration.

“Early American Music” was the theme of the February meeting of
the Saline County Historical Society. John Schork of the Harrisburg
Township High School had some of his choral students sing early Ameri-

can music.

In March Mrs. John W. Towle spoke on “The Restoration of j
Williamsburg.” The meetings were held in the Mitchell-Carnegie Li-
brary in Harrisburg.

NEWS AND COMMENT

247

The spring meeting of the Southern Illinois Historical Society was
held in Harrisburg on April 29. Dr. Frank Lawrence Owsley, historian,
author, and teacher was the principal speaker. His topic was “Folkways
of the Old South.” Scerial Thompson is president of the Society and at
this meeting was re-elected. Other officers, all re-elected are: Norman W.
Caldwell, first vice-president; Mrs. J. P. Schuh, second vice-president;
W. S. Burkhart, Miss Emma Brickey, and L. O. Trigg, directors. C. C.
Kerr was selected to replace Arthur F. Lee, who had resigned from the
board of directors.

At the annual meeting of the Stephenson County Historical Society
in April, A. L. Riche showed colored slides of an illuminated book made
! by the late Mrs. Frank N. Bass over a period of many years. As the pages
L 5 of the volume were shown a recording made by Mrs. Thor Wesenberg
I; told the story of this remarkable book which Mrs. Bass called “Songs of
\\ the Centuries.” Mr. Riche also showed photographic slides of the So-
I ciety’s grounds and some of its museum’s other prized possessions. Among
pothers who spoke briefly at this meeting are: Mrs. Frank H. Redmer,
Robert F. Koenig, J. R. Jackson, Mrs. Clyde H. Neyhart, and C. H.
Bollinger.

New directors elected by the Society are: Mrs. J. Hewitt Rosentiel,
iMrs. John M. Linden, John L. Held, and Harry M. Phillips. Directors
I re-elected are: Miss Mabel Goddard, Carl F. Ogden, Philip L. Keister,
band Clyde C. Kaiser.

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Officers of the Swedish Historical Society are: Alf O. Ahlstrand,
B president; Marvin O. Alden, first vice-president; Carl P. Sandstrom, second
■ vice-president; and Herman G. Nelson, secretary-treasurer. New directors
[I are: George M. Edblom and Mrs. Axel Eklund.

West Chicago will celebrate its one hundredth birthday this sum-
mer. A committee headed by Walter Fawell is planning the centennial.
Frank F. Scobey is chairman of the historical committee.

248

NEWS AND COMMENT

The Wilmette Historical Commission, of which Horace Holley is
chairman, plans to have an exhibit in the Wilmette Woman’s Club on
Sunday, September 18. This will consist of paintings, photographs, and
historical objects loaned by residents of the village. The collection of
paintings is under the direction of Mrs. Tracy E. Johntz, Harvey J. Steffens;
will conduct the photographic display, and the historical objects are un-
der the supervision of Miss Frances Scheidenhelm.

The Winnetka Historical Society is trying to complete its collection
of photographs of the village presidents. Only three are still needed.!
They are photographs of: James L. Miller, who served from 1875 to 1876;
George Baker, from 1902 to 1903; and Edward C. Kohler, from 1906 to;
1907. If you have one of these photographs please write to Mrs. Stella
Winslow, Village Clerk, or to Frank A. Windes, 873 Spruce Street, Win-:
netka.

On March, 16 members of the Society heard Samuel S. Otis in an
illustrated lecture on the restoration of New Salem. Both C. Herrick!
Hammond and Robert Kingery, who supervised the restoration, are Win-1
netka residents.

NEW MEMBERS

In the March issue of this Journal we printed a list of the 182 peoplej
who joined the Illinois State Historical Society in October, November,!
and December, 1948. Following are the 286 names of those enrolled dur-
ing January, February, and March, 1949, an increase of 104 over the
previous three months’ period.

LIFE MEMBERS

Butterworth, Mrs. William Moline, 111. Stoddard, Dr. George D Urbana, 111

MacArthur, Alfred Chicago, 111. Williamson, George H Winnetka, 111

ANNUAL MEMBERS

Aaron, Mrs. Talitha E Eldorado, 111. Albee, Mrs. Deane Bloomington, 111

Abrahamson, Inga E Chicago, 111. Allen, Edward, Jr Park Ridge, 111

Ackert, Marion C Dixon, 111. Ammann, Mrs. Harry S Clarno, Wis

Adams, Georgia Waukegan, 111. Anderson, Mary-Louisa Chicago,Tll

Akin, William S Chicago, 111. Anderson, Rosemary Chicago, 111

NEWS AND COMMENT

249

I Anson, Mrs. Jessie M.
I Appleyard, Maud F. . .
I Atkinson, Mrs. R. H.

. .Chicago, 111.
. Glenview, 111.
. .Nauvoo, 111.

Bagnolia, Mary Chicago, 111.

Bailey, Robert W., Jr St. Charles, 111.

Bangert, Howard W Park Ridge, 111.

Bangs, Mrs. E. H Riverside, 111.

Barrett, Lyman G Salem, 111.

Bartlett, Emma Grand Ridge, 111.

Bartlett, William A Springfield, 111.

Baum, Alice C Oak Park, 111.

Baumgartner, Bernice A. . .Murphysboro, 111.

Behymer, F. A Lebanon, 111.

Beitzell, Mrs. Ora Iowa City, Iowa

Bellrose, Mrs. Vernon Ottawa, 111.

Bennett, Clinton C Glencoe, 111.

Besse, Mr. & Mrs. Kennard J. .Sterling, 111.

Black, Dr. Ellsworth Jacksonville, 111.

Boehm, Dr. Alfred C Chicago, 111.

Boston, Mrs. E. B Oak Park, 111.

Bradley, Corydon C Springfield, 111.

Bradley, Phillips Urbana, 111.

Brewer, Mrs. Emmalu Westville, 111.

Brodahl, Betsey Rock Island, 111.

Brodie, A. L Chicago, 111.

Brooks, Frances Springfield, 111.

Brooks, Margaret Springfield, 111.

Brown, Mr. & Mrs. Archie W. . .Dixon, 111.

Brown, Mildred J Jacksonville, 111.

Browne, Richard G Normal, 111.

Buckner, Carl Gilman, 111.

Buffe, Mrs. Otto F Jacksonville, 111.

Burch, A. T Wilmette, 111.

Byrne, Archibald J Oberlin, Ohio

Cairns, Mrs. Stewart Scott. .Champaign, 111.

Cardwell, John C Chicago, 111.

Carter, John B Peoria, 111.

Case, Bessie Chicago, 111.

Cassell, George F Chicago, 111.

Caudle, Carter C Carbondale, 111.

Chandler, Louise Chicago, 111.

• Chandler, Sophie Washington, D. C.

Clark, Mrs. H. A Princeton, 111.

Claus, Ralph H Ottawa, 111.

Condell, Eliza Springfield, 111.

Cone, L. Winston Highland, Ind.

Cooper, Elizabeth E Elizabeth, 111.

Crawford, Lucille V Jacksonville, 111.

Crawley, Angela M Chicago, 111.

| Davis, Mrs. David Bloomington, 111.

Dexheimer, Lora M Normal, 111.

Dickson, Mrs. Lansing A. . .Monmouth, 111.

Dieckhaus, Vonnetti Beardstown, 111.

Diver, Clarence W Waukegan, 111.

Duncan, Wilbur H Decatur, 111.

Eaton, William S Chicago, 111.

Engle, Paul Iowa City, Iowa

Erickson, Oscar R Chicago, 111.

-Eschenbach, Raymond Chesterton, Ind.

Farwell, Mrs. Lillian Winnetka, 111.

Faucon, Arthur Springfield, 111.

Fisher, Charles W Winnetka, 111.

Follett, Garth B Oak Park, 111.

Ford, Mrs. Nora S Herrin, 111.

Foster, Mr. & Mrs. Clyde D. . .Evanston, 111.

Francis, Albert J., Jr Washington, D. C.

Frank, Margaret Freeport, 111.

Fredrick, W. Howard Chicago, 111.

Freeman, Mrs. W. R Denver, Colo.

Fulton, James B Oquawka, 111.

Ganey, Helen M Chicago, 111.

Gardner, Mrs. Pansy Gridley, Calif.

Garrett, Fern Decatur, 111.

Gates, Paul W Ithaca, N. Y.

Gatewood, Mrs. Robert H Flora, 111.

Glenn, Mrs. Robert B Beardstown, 111.

Glore, Reilly Missoula, Mont.

Godfrey, Mrs. Wayne R Nampa, Idaho

Goldstine, Mrs. Mark T., Jr

Chesterton, Ind.

Goodenough, A. L Morrison, 111.

Gossard, Mrs. H. A Princeton, 111.

Grove, Arthur M Bloomington, 111.

HafFner, Charles C., Jr Chicago, 111.

Haight, John M., Jr Lake Forest, 111.

Hall, Allen V Kankakee, 111.

Hall, Charles E McLeansboro, 111.

Halley, Dr. Henry H Godfrey, 111.

Halperin, Arthur Chicago, 111.

Hamand, Lavern M Monticello, 111.

Hamilton, Mr. & Mrs. Clyde E

Springfield, 111.

Hanna, Edna F Springfield, 111.

Hargrave, T. J Rochester, N. Y.

Hart, James Bloomington, 111.

Hastings, Mrs. H. R Normal, 111.

Hecht, Ben Nyack, N. Y.

Heim, Mrs. Sophie E Chicago, 111.

Heinecke, Edwin C Collinsville, III.

Herschel, Robert James Eureka, 111.

Heth, Lloyd D Evanston, 111.

Hettiger, Mrs. Nellie B Flora, 111.

Hitchcock, Jean Dixon, 111.

Hobson, Mrs. Howard Greenfield, 111.

Hoover, Mrs. Ina S Princeton, 111.

Huffier, Mr. & Mrs. Enos G. . Springfield, 111.

Hundley, Grace E Flora, 111.

Hungate, Mr. & Mrs. John I — Sterling, 111.
Hunt, Herold C Chicago, 111.

Jacobs, Mrs. Lester Erie, 111.

Jacobson, J. Z Chicago, 111.

James, Pence St. Charles, 111.

James, Mrs. R. M Springfield, 111.

Jenks, Herbert C Evanston, 111.

250

NEWS AND COMMENT

Johnson, Amos Bloomington, Til.

Johnson, Mrs. Margaret D Chicago, 111.

Kanady, Johnson, Jr Waukegan, 111.

Karr, Mrs. R. F Sheldon, 111.

Keezel, Mrs. Clara C Fulton, 111.

Kelley, Royce A Alden, 111.

Kells, George D Chicago, 111.

Kennady, Dorothy Chicago, 111.

Kennicott, Hiram L Des Plaines, 111.

Kepler, Edna Litchfield, 111.

King, Mrs. Fain White Cairo, 111.

King, Mildred T Palos Heights, 111.

King, Paul J Springfield, 111.

Kirschten, Robert Chicago, 111.

Kline, Mrs. A. O Macomb, 111.

Kline, James D. W Wilmette, 111.

Knutz, William H Evanston, 111.

Kogan, Herman Chicago, 111.

La Barre, Mr. & Mrs. Alfred J

Springfield, 111.

Langer, Harold R Ottawa, 111.

Lawrence, C. M Fort Collins, Colo.

Lawson, Fred K Springfield, 111.

Leith, John A Chicago, 111.

Leverone, L. E Chicago, 111.

Linehan, Joseph A., Jr Chicago, 111.

Lister, Amanda Chicago, 111.

Lockhart, Bess M Aurora, 111.

Lodeski, Frank J Oak Park, 111.

Lussenkop, Ray Oak Park, 111.

McCarty, Mrs. Merton Wheaton, 111.

McCormick, Robert H Chicago, 111.

McIntyre, Louise Newman, 111.

Mack, Dewey H Goshen, Ind.

McKee, John D Chicago, 111.

McKernan, Maureen. . . .White Plains, N. Y.

Maina, Arthur A Chicago, 111.

Mandel, Col. Leon Chicago, 111.

Marsh, Baker Chicago, 111.

Marshall, Helen E Normal, 111.

Marshall, Mrs. Loyd W Belleville, 111.

Marten, Kay Chicago, 111.

Martin, Mrs. Avery Carrollton, 111.

Martin, Edward M Chicago, 111.

Martin, Leslie N Virginia, 111.

Mast, Mrs. C. C Quincy, 111.

Mayer, Howard G Chicago, 111.

Meeker, Arthur Chicago, 111.

Meloan, Robert Oquawka, 111.

Mezilson, James M Washington, D. C.

Michelet, Mrs. Charles Jules . .Wilmette, 111.

Miller, Robert E., Jr Springfield, 111.

Miller, William J Western Springs, 111.

Mills, Ray V Maywood, 111.

Milton, George Fort Buffalo, N. Y.

Moran, Mrs. Harold B Chicago, 111.

Morehouse, M. Dutton . . . .Lake Forest, 111.

Morgan, Mr. & Mrs. Wayne L

Springfield, 111.

Morron, Jean Peoria, 111.

Mortensen, Monrad A Park Ridge, 111.

Moyer, Mary E Springfield, 111.

Mueller, Mr. & Mrs. Clarence J

Sterling, 111.

Musham, H. A Chicago, 111.

Neville, A. W

Nixon, Helen G. . .
Norman, C. Albert
Nute, Frankie M. .
Nystrom, Merrill . .

. . .Paris, Tex.
Evanston, Illj
.Chicago, 111.
.Freeport, III J
. . .Altona, 111.1

Oborn, Dr. George T Bloomington, 111!

Oestreich, Mrs. Kathryn D Carthage, Ill j

Olsen, Martin B Park Ridge, Illj

Olson, Amos F Oak Park, III4

Owings, Mrs. Clyde N Mattoon, Illj

Page, James C Nauvoo, 111!

Parker, Judson L Chicago, Illj

Pearce, Mrs. Roy E Carmi, Illj

Phillips, Naomi H Chesterton, Indj

Porter, Marjorie Waukegan, Ill|

Porter, Maurice Clinton, 111 J

Pratt, Nina Rockford, 111!

Pugh, Robert C Eureka, 111!

Putnam, Mrs. John F Oregon, 111!

Rapp, Mrs. Helen A Byron, 111

Read, W. B Bloomington, 111

Redman, Robert J Chicago, Illj

Reed, Earl H Chicago, 111

Reh, F. O Belleville, 111

Renehan, George Patrick. .Round Lake, 111

Ricketts, Ashley Hugh Chicago, 111

Robinson, W. B Springfield

Robinson, W. P Chicago

Rogers, Helene H Springfield, ill!

Rosenberg, Emanual Decatur, 111

Roth, Mrs. Ernest C Peru, Ilf,

Russell, Sabin I. Chicago, Illj

Samuels, Thomas Decatur, 111!

Schaefer, J. Will Philadelphia, P2

Schaffer, Otto G Urbana, Il|

Schmidt, Royal J Elmhurst, II

Schroeder, S. J Waterloo, 111

Schuette, Rev. Carl J Farmersville, 11).

Selby, Arthur T Chicago, 111

Shaw, F. A Joliet, Il.|

Sheean, Mrs. Frank T Galena, II

Short, J. D Chicago, II

Siegel, Max Chicago, II

Simmons, Harold W Kankakee, II

Simons, Katharyn Yorkville, II

Smith, Mrs. Alice H-J Chicago, II

Smith, Carter Tulsa, Okl

NEWS AND COMMENT

251

mith, Mrs. Grace S Normal, 111.

pringer, Jessie E. ...... . .Edwardsville, 111.

quires, Henry W ...... .Springfield, 111.

tacv, L. M Peoria, 111.

tahl, Garland .Illiopolis, 111.

teck, Rev. Francis Borgia. . . . .Quincy, 111.
tern, Dr. Erich Decatur, 111.

hevers, Martin D. .......... . .Chicago, 111.

itewart, Mary j Carmi, 111.

Tokes, Jim Westville, Ind.

Taft, J. W Decatur, 111.

Tarrant, Thalia J Normal, 111.

Tieken, Robert Libertyville, 111.

Tolley, Wilma Bloomington, 111.

Tompkins, V. R .Metuchen, N. J.

Towle, Mary Comfort Elsah, 111.

Townsend, Karl O Wellington, Ohio

Trantina, Ruth E. . . . Berwyn, 111.

Tunnell, Ella Edwardsville, 111.

Twitchell, Mrs. James W Belleville, 111.

Van Boyd, Dr. Tullie. . . East St. Louis, 111.

Van Cleave, Mrs. Mary D. Onarga, 111.

j Voight, Fred J Malden, Mass.

Warebam, Winifred A .Freeport, 111.

Watson, Elmo Scott. Colfax, 111.

Webb, George N Mt. Vernon, 111.

Webber, Gladys E .Galesburg, 111 •

Webber, Dr. Karl K. .......... . .Flora, Ill-

Weir, Mrs. Edgar W. . . Atwood, 111 -

Weisman, Al Chicago, 111 -

Weissenborn, Leo J. Chicago, Ill-

West, Mrs. Ralph E. ...... . .Waukegan, 111-

Wetzel, Mr. & Mrs. Marion

.West Middletown, Ohio

Wheeler, Mr. & Mrs. Lawrence .Sterling, 111.
White, Cleveland J. ..... . River Forest, 111.

White, Stanley L. .Ottawa, 111.

Whittaker, Wayne. ...... River Forest, 111.

Wilkins, George T. ........ . .Nameoki, 111.

Will, Roy B. ......... . .Murphysboro, 111.

Williams, George W. ..... . . Shelby ville, 111.

Windes, Guilford R. ....... . .Winnetka, 111.

Wirth, Sidney R .River Forest, 111.

Woltmann, Mrs. Carl E. ..... . .Pontiac, 111.

Woodle, Bernard .......... .Springfield, 111.

Wright, Louise .Decatur, 111.

Wyatt, Edith Franklin .Chicago, 111.

Yentzer, Mr. & Mrs. L. E. ............ .

.Chicago Heights, 111.

Young, Homer F .Godfrey, 111.

Young, Jane .Chicago, 111.

Zeigler, Roscoe Springfield, 111.

Zipp, Samuel K .......... .Chicago, 111.

mmmmm

brff ; ^

1899 — Golden Anniversary Year — 1949

SPRINGFIELD, ILLINOIS

September 1949

crs^

The Illinois State

HISTORICAL LIBRARY

TRUSTEES

Alfred W. Stern Clarence P. McClelland

Benjamin P. Thomas

The Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society is pub-
' lished by the Illinois State Historical Library for distribu-
tion to members of the Society.

STAFF OF THE JOURNAL
J. Monaghan, Editor

S. A. Wetherbee and Howard F. Rissler, Associate Editors

Manuscripts submitted for publication should be ad-
dressed to J. Monaghan, Illinois State Historical Library,
Springfield, Illinois.

The editors do not assume any responsibility for the per-
sonal opinions expressed by authors of articles published.

“No

ENTERED AS SECOND-CLASS MATTER ON JULY 5, 1918, AT THE POST OFFICE
AT SPRINGFIELD, ILLINOIS, UNDER THE ACT OF OCTOBER 5, 1917

JOURNAL OF THE

ILLINOIS STATE

Historical Society

Volume xlii Number 3 September 1949

Published four times a year, in March, June, September, and December

STATE OF ILLINOIS
Adlai E. Stevenson, Governor

(Printed by Authority of the State of Illinois)

TABLE OF CONTENTS ^ ^ ^ ^ ^

The Writing of Abraham Lincoln : A History

Helen Nicolay 259

John Russell of Bluffdale

John T. Flanagan 272

A Tour of Illinois in 1842

Mentor L. Williams 292

Notes on Old Cahokia, Part III

Charles E. Peterson 313

Lincolniana

When Were the Debates First Published? by Jay Monaghan 344

Historical Notes

Fire Marks in Illinois 348

Illinois Scrapbook 352

Book Reviews 360

News and Comment 368

ILLUSTRATIONS ^ ^ ^ ^ ^

1899 — Golden Anniversary Year — 1949 Front Cover

Lincoln and His Secretaries 258

John Russell 273

Cahokia's Famous Church of the Holy Family 327

French Roof Trusses 337

Evidence of Early Publication of the Debates 345

Fire Mark of a Springfield Company 349

From a Jersey County Store 350

A Big Company with a Big Mark 351

Monks' Mound a Hundred Years Ago 353

Lincoln and His Secretaries

When John G. Nicolay, {left), and John Hay posed with President jj
Lincoln, on November 8, 1863, they were at the Gardner Gallery in Wash- 1 1
ington. For the print reproduced above Nicolay employed an artist to add as I
a suitable background the furnishings of the White House "Cabinet Room”
with its mantel and oil painting ol Andrew Jackson. Even the pattern of [1
the carpet was changed.

THE WRITING OF
ABRAHAM LINCOLN : A HISTORY

BY HELEN NICOLAY

MY father, John G. Nicolay, explained the difference be-
tween newspaper writing and writing a book in this
way: "The writer of books is like a rifleman; he fires at long
range with steady aim. The journalist resembles the sports-
man who shoots his bird on the wing. The former bags the
heaviest game but the latter counts the most scalps.”1

It is not strange that he considered himself first of all a
newspaperman until he was well into middle age. Eight of
the most formative years of his youth were spent in a small-
town newspaper office where he filled every position in turn
from printer’s devil to that of editor and proprietor.2 This was
in Pittsfield, county seat of Pike County, Illinois, one of the
towns to which Lincoln and other political leaders came to
make speeches during the period of growing slavery agita-
tion before the Civil War. After he sold the Free Press to
study law, he acted as correspondent for St. Louis and Spring-
field journals. Again, after the Civil War, in the interval be-

1 From a book on French journalism begun during his residence in Paris (1865-
1869) but never published.

2 Pike County Free Press.

Helen Nicolay, only daughter of Lincoln’s private secretary
and biographer, was born in Paris while her father was serving
there as United States Consul General. In addition to The Boys’
Life of Abraham Lincoln she has written about twenty books and
numerous magazine articles. She now makes her home in Wash-
ington, D. C.

259

260

THE WRITING OF "ABRAHAM LINCOLN”

tween his return from France (1869) and his appointment
as Marshal of the United States Supreme Court (1872), he
wrote articles for the New York Times, and spent three heart-
breaking months trying to lift the Chicago Republican out of
the difficulties in which it was floundering. Time, however,
has proved that he was not a newspaperman, but one of those
literary riflemen who fire at long range with steady aim.

Foreordination is not at present a fashionable word. One
respectable dictionary has dropped it entirely from its pages
— but it is not so easy to drop the idea for which it stands
definitely out of human life. In my father’s case, for instance,
an astonishing number of events seems to have been con- j
trived especially to give him firsthand knowledge of the con-
ditions under which Abraham Lincoln grew to maturity.

There were great differences, of course. My father was
twenty-three years younger than Lincoln. He was not even fl
born in the United States. But since there never was a more
loyal American, or a more loyal son of Illinois, it is relatively
unimportant that he happened to be born in Rhenish Bavaria’s
little village of Essingen, instead of on our western prairies, i
He was very young — only five — when his emigrant parents
brought him by sailing ship to New Orleans, and from there
made their slow way northward. It was in Illinois that he
grew up. In Illinois that he met the greatest man of his epoch
and entered on the most wonderful experience of his life. I
believe he felt a warmer affection for Illinois than for any
other spot in our broad land. I know he thought the fruitful
Mississippi Valley to be the richest and most blessed of re- i
gions — the true garden spot of America.

From earliest childhood the physical surroundings of my
father and Abraham Lincoln followed the same pattern. Ini
the Illinois woods both grew up in what may be called the
second phase of pioneer life — when the dangers and excite- j
ments of opening up the wilderness were over, but most of i
its hardships remained.

HELEN NICOLAY

261

Each had about the same amount of schooling — little
enough! — amounting to scarcely more than a year in all. For-
tunately the schools my father attended were better, though
he once told a group of young people that the formal part of
his education ended with three months in a typical log school-
house — the kind where a quilt was sometimes used in place
of a door, and light from the small window made its way
through oiled paper instead of glass. In the particular school
my father attended the pupils had no slates or pencils or
paper or pens or ink.

Both his parents having died, my father faced the world
alone earlier than Lincoln did. Both Lincoln and Father had
experiences in a country store. Lincoln, who was part owner
of one, failed. My father was only a clerk, but his duties in-
cluded everything from sweeping the floor to keeping the
books in single entry, and so far as making a living was con-
cerned, the result was about the same. Father’s wages were
so low that by the end of the second year he had managed to
save only two silver dollars. During this store-keeping period
and for years afterward both youngsters borrowed and dili-
gently read every book that came their way.

Educationally the eight fruitful years in the Free Press
office that followed for my father may be compared, in a gen-
eral way, to Lincoln’s years in New Salem. From the small
town of New Salem, Lincoln passed on, successively, to larger
opportunities and responsibilities in Vandalia and Springfield
and Washington. My father’s progress was from Pittsfield,
a county seat, to Springfield, the state capital, and then, in
company with Lincoln himself, to the capital of the nation.

Although occupying only minor positions in Springfield
and Washington, he had in both these towns unusual oppor-
tunities to observe what went on, and to know the chief actors
in the political drama. In Springfield he was chief clerk in
the office of O. M. Hatch,3 secretary of state for Illinois. It

3 Ozias M. Hatch, secretary of state from 1857 to 1865.

262

THE WRITING OF "ABRAHAM LINCOLN"

was a pleasant office, before whose open fire Lincoln and other
leaders often gathered for consultation. In Washington he
was the President’s private secretary, with all that that implied.

After the President’s death my father spent four years
in Paris, as American Consul General, an office to which he
had been confirmed by the Senate before Mr. Lincoln’s as-
sassination. Upon his return to America it was impossible,
because of ill health and other circumstances, to begin at once
the book that he and John Hay had long ago determined to
write. This was vexatious, but there were possibly compensat-
ing advantages in that it provided still more time for thought
and evaluation. As for the years in France, they must have
brought sharply to mind the contrast between two rulers:
Lincoln, the great man without pretense, who led his country
safely through a tremendous crisis, and Napoleon III, too
small for the role he tried to play, under whom an empire
was fast going to pieces.

The homing instinct carried my father back to Illinois.
There he bought a little farm just outside the city limits of
Springfield. This remained a cherished possession, though
duties of office, and the need to consult government records
while working on the Lincoln book, caused him to maintain
a home in Washington for many years.

One of the first things he did after returning from France
was to secure, from the proper Illinois court, proof of his
citizenship. Probably it had not occurred to him before going
abroad that this could be doubted; but four years in Europe
convinced him that American citizenship was something very
precious, to be surrounded with all possible safeguards.

His idea that he was a newspaperman gradually faded,
but all his life he maintained that in the United States there
was no career so independent and useful and generally satis-
factory as that of editor of a newspaper in a "live’’ country
town. Once, when a friend asked his help in securing a fed-
eral appointment in Washington, he answered:

HELEN NICOLAY

263

With your knowledge of the world, of politics, and experience in news-
paper work, why don’t you look about you, choose a good location for a
county paper, and build up a permanent independent business . . . where you
can build up influence and consideration instead of coming to this or any
other city to be one smart fellow among ten thousand other smart fellows,
caged up in an 18 x 35 brick box, climbing up and down stairs like Sisyphus,
breathing coal-gas by day and sewer-gas by night? Why toil to pay monthly
rent bills . . . when you might swing your hammock under your own tree
and milk a real cow instead of a pump? . . . There is more health, morality,
prosperity, enjoyment, true comfort of life, and a better field of usefulness
and opportunity for easy distinction in any flourishing country village in
America having three to five thousand inhabitants than is possible in any
great city.4

Meanwhile his conception of the book he wanted to write
underwent great changes. He had first met Lincoln in Pitts-
field, back in his editorial days. Strongly antislavery himself,
he quickly recognized leadership and was one of the editors
who signed the call for the Bloomington Convention of 1856
at which the Republican Party of Illinois formally came into
being. He never forgot Lincoln’s towering figure and inspired
face on that occasion when he made his famous "Lost Speech.”
It was thus that my father remembered him, when asked, as
he so often was, whether Lincoln "wasn’t a very homely man?”

But he used to say that it was only in Springfield that
he became really acquainted with Lincoln. Mr. Hatch’s office
adjoined the State Library, of which he also had charge. Here
were kept records of state elections, of which Mr. Lincoln
was an eager and very shrewd student, reading indications of
victory or defeat in apparently insignificant figures. He had
frequent occasion to consult such tables, and often asked my
father to bring them to him. In this way their acquaintance
grew. My father came to the conclusion that Lincoln had a
very warm heart as well as an extraordinarily acute mind; and
Mr. Lincoln, on his part, seemed to like the quiet young man
with his slow, sad smile.

When the Republican Nominating Convention met in
Chicago in May, I860, my father was there to send the Mis-

4 John G. Nicolay to C. M. Walters, Apr. 2, 1881.

264

THE WRITING OF "ABRAHAM LINCOLN”

souri Democrat stirring accounts of crowds streaming through
the streets toward the Wigwam, and of the scenes enacted
within its wooden walls. Excited over Mr. Lincoln’s nomina-
tion he hurried back to Springfield, cherishing the hope that
he might be allowed to write the campaign "life” of the can-
didate which must be issued at once. This did not seem too
extravagant a hope, since he was accustomed to writing, per-
sonally knew Mr. Lincoln, and believed heart and soul in the
principles of the Republican Party. It was a bitter disappoint-
ment to learn that the commission to write the campaign "life”
had already been given to another young man, at that time
equally unknown to fame — an Ohioan named William D.
Howells.

Father was habitually reticent, but this time disappoint-
ment was so overwhelming it had to seek relief in speech. He
found himself telling Mr. Hatch about it in broken accents.
Mr. Hatch looked at him with kindly eyes, then laid his hand
on his arm and replied: "Never mind. You are to be private
secretary.”

I think that was the proudest moment of my father’s life.
He had never dreamed of such a thing, and to his dying day
rejoiced that the position came to him, unsolicited by him-
self, or, so far as he knew, by anyone else, solely because of
the acquaintanceship that had ripened in Mr. Hatch’s office.

It was inevitable that more than one publisher would
wish to print an "authoritative” life for use during the cam-
paign. One of the first duties of the new secretary was to copy
two autobiographical accounts that Mr. Lincoln wrote with his
own hand. One was very short. The longer one, covering sev-
eral manuscript pages, became the basis for Mr. Howells’
book, which was speedily published, served its purpose, and
was soon forgotten. When emissaries arrived from other pub-
lishers, they were politely received, but my father had to tell
them that no information could be considered "exclusive,”
since it was Mr. Lincoln’s wish that all should be treated alike

HELEN NICOLAY

265

— an explanation that tended to prolong the memory of his
own disappointment.

During the campaign he found himself making an occa-
sional note, "just in case," for somehow he could not banish
from his mind the idea of writing a Lincoln book himself.
These notes were fragmentary — sometimes only hasty pen
pictures of unimportant happenings, like the chance meeting
one morning between Mr. Lincoln and a young stranger who
asked to be directed to the Statehouse where the candidate
held daily receptions. Mr. Lincoln said he was going there
himself and would act as guide, but only revealed his identity
when they entered the building. The fullest of these notes told
about the visits to Springfield of Edward Bates, Lincoln’s
future attorney general.

Every day of my father’s service in Washington increased
his admiration of the President. Before the war was half over
he knew that an ephemeral thing like a campaign biography
was no longer possible. The book about Lincoln must be a
serious work, giving an account of his administration as well
as of his previous career. He talked the matter over with John
Hay, who had come to Washington with Mr. Lincoln to be
my father’s assistant. John Hay was enthusiastic. The two
agreed to write it together, and that it must be a history as
well as a biography. They told Mr. Lincoln of their plan. He
approved, and promised to help them. After this they tried
to keep a more systematic record, but imperative daily duties
sadly interfered.

Then came the tragedy of the President’s death. My father
; was not in Washington at the time, but was on his way home
from a short visit to Cuba with the Assistant Secretary of
War. They had planned their return to reach Charleston in
time to see Major General Robert Anderson raise the flag
again over Fort Sumter that he had been obliged to lower in
1861. There was no telegraphic communication between
1 Charleston and the North, and next morning their ship sailed

266

THE WRITING OF "ABRAHAM LINCOLN”

out of the harbor before the report of the assassination wa:
received. So the shock was all the greater when the pilo
brought them the news as he boarded the ship at Hampton
Roads. Up to that moment it had seemed a time for unlimited
rejoicing. My father wrote:

It was so unexpected, so sudden and so horrible to think of, much less*
to realize, that we couldn’t believe it, and therefore remained in the hope
that it would prove one of the thousand groundless exaggerations the wai

has brought forth Alas, when we reached Point Lookout at daylight next

morning the mournful reports of the minute guns that were being fired,
and the flags at half-mast left us no ground for further hope. I went ashore
with the boat to forward our telegrams, and there found a paper of Satur
day giving all the painful details.

I am so overwhelmed by this catastrophe that I scarcely know what tc

think or to write — my own faith in the future is unshaken but wi

the whole country remain as patient and as trusting as when it felt its interests
safe in the hands of Mr. Lincoln?

It would seem that Providence has extracted from him the last and onl;
additional service and sacrifice that he could have given his country — tha
of dying for her sake. Those of us who knew him will certainly interpre
his death as a sign that Heaven deemed him worthy of martyrdom.5

In this first letter my father’s chief concern had been fo
the welfare of the country: but to nobody outside of the Presi
dent’s immediate family did his death bring more poignan
grief. Writing after the funeral in Washington his personal
loss came uppermost: "Words seem so inadequate to describe
my own personal sorrow at the loss of such a friend as the
President has been to me .... I think I do not yet and prob
ably shall not for a long while to come realize what a change
his death has wrought in my personal relations.”6

The whole fabric of his world seemed crumbling. He
followed the only sane course possible at such a time — per-
formed each obvious "next” duty as it presented itself, with
out trying to look too far into the future. After the President’*
body had been laid in Illinois soil, he and John Hay returned
to Washington to gather up the President’s papers and turr

5 John G. Nicolay to Therena Bates, Apr. 17, 1865.

6 John G. Nicolay to Therena Bates, Apr. 24, 1865.

HELEN NICOLAY

267

their offices in the nation’s capital over to their successors.

In June, 1865, my father went to Paris, where he remained
four years. John Hay was also abroad during most of that
time, filling diplomatic posts in France, Austria, and Spain.
After both had returned to this country, further unavoidable
delays occurred. It was not until 1872, after my father had
become Marshal of the United States Supreme Court that he
was able to begin a systematic examination of the Lincoln
papers. In 1875 he sent John Hay what he called "a first in-
stallment of material.” Almost from the moment of the Presi-
dent’s death they had been besieged with questions and sug-
gestions and offers to print whatever they chose to write; and
nearly every such letter asked when their book would be ready
for the press. For years they answered that they had every in-
tention of writing a book about Lincoln, but that as yet it was
not far enough advanced to warrant setting a date for pub-
lication.

Late in 1886 its first chapters appeared in The Century
Magazine, which continued to publish installments for four
years, about two-thirds of the work being printed first in this
form. Nearly thirty years passed between the time my father
hurried home from the Chicago nominating convention, ex-
cited and eager to write a little campaign biography, and the
History’s dignified final appearance as a completed work, in
ten volumes, royal octavo, with two similar volumes of the
President’s writings still to follow.

A word about my father’s habits of work may be of in-
terest. His bent toward historical writing appears to have de-
veloped early, perhaps even during childhood in the Illinois
woods, when he had few companions of his own age, and none
of similar studious tastes. An old family Bible printed in
crabbed German characters was one of the three or four books
the immigrants brought with them across the Atlantic. He
tells us that he used to read in this "for relaxation,” his inter-
est centering solely in the Old Testament and the Apocrypha

268

THE WRITING OF "ABRAHAM LINCOLN”

— especially the books of the Maccabees with their inspiring
stories of courage and patriotism. From these he got the same
enjoyment that he found later in tales of chivalry.

The first book that he planned to write himself was about
early explorations in the Mississippi Valley. It was never writ- i
ten, but remained long in his mind. He made notes for it from
books borrowed from the Pittsfield Library, copied maps in
pen and pencil from records in Springfield, and in Paris made
his own translations from French manuscripts. When he read
the Bible "for relaxation” he was too young to be conscious!
of its beauties of style, or to note that those grand old writers
whose work has withstood the centuries never gained their
effects by piling up adjectives. But their example sank deep!
into his mind. If there was a short time in his newspaper
career when he was lavish with adjectives, it was an indis-
cretion of early youth, soon over.

At the time the History was written he seemed to dis-
trust them as beguiling and dangerous parts of speech. "Get;
out the adjective gun” was his humorous command when a,
chapter neared completion, and a deadly hunt would begin,
forthwith to decrease their number and, if possible, increase j
the effectiveness of the few allowed to remain.

Two very useful things that he learned in the printing!:
office were patience and the importance of detail. That parti
of his Free Press training was over long before the influx of
modern inventions to save time. In his day every individual
letter of type had to be picked up as a separate bit of metal, ji
turned about in the compositor’s fingers until it was in the;
proper position, and then inserted in its place in a printer’s
stick. Incidentally, such typesetting gave wonderful training!!
in the humbler essentials of spelling and punctuation. It hadj
still another advantage, providing ample time for an agile-
minded youth to consider the idea he was setting in type and!
accept or reject it as reason and conscience dictated. Thus it
was training in logic and analysis as well as manual dexterity.

HELEN NICOLAY 269

My father used to say a printing office was "a poor man’s col-
lege,” and in his case it amply proved so.

As private secretary his wide experience with visitors to
the White House, most of whom came to ask "a small favor,”
made him a shrewd judge of men and motives; while the
flood of "reminiscences” that poured in upon the authors of
Abraham Lincoln: A History showed them how easily, with
the lapse of years, mere wishing can turn into absolute cer-
tainty: in other words, that human memory, unsupported by
written evidence, is not to be trusted. It gave them satisfac-
tion to be able to say when their book was finished that not
a statement in it had been made without written proof.

After my father entered upon his duties as Marshal he
wrote to Robert Lincoln, who had promised him the custody
of the Lincoln papers, that he now had exclusive control of
a room in the basement of the Capitol in Washington that
was safer than any bank vault in Chicago, and asked that they
be sent on for his examination and classification:

I am satisfied that the task is in every way a longer and more perplexing
one than either of us yet imagines. ... I am also especially anxious — and I
[press this point particularly — that not a scrap of paper of any kind be de-
stroyed. The merest memorandum, mark, signature or figure may have a
future historical value which we cannot now arbitrarily determine, and the
ionly good rule is to save everything. ... It is of immense importance that
: all accessible material shall at the earliest possible moment be put into a
permanent methodical and convenient arrangement for reference use. Your
.father’s papers must necessarily form the nucleus. Around this it is my design
to group such documentary collections (printed, or MS, original or copied
ias the case may admit) as the most diligent efforts on my part can bring
! together. To this end I propose to glean the files and records of the various
departments of government . . . and as far as I can gain permission, the per-
sonal and private papers of the various cabinet officers, subordinate civil and
leading army and navy officers whose careers gave them official prominence
or personal intimacy in your father’s administration.

I do not flatter myself that this is a trifling work. But I know that no
one has equal advantages with myself for doing it. . . . There are in this city
every winter during sessions of Congress from one to two hundred individ-
uals from whom secondary or relative information on individual points or
' incidents may be obtained. Many of them are growing old, and in the course

270

THE WRITING OF 'ABRAHAM LINCOLN"

of Nature will not reappear here many winters. As examples I mention j
Cameron, Blair, Sumner, Wade, Wilson and others, the list of whom is too
long for this letter. Whenever I can begin the study of special points I can
go to these men for special papers or reminiscences, but it is not of the least
earthly use to go to them until I have a definite inquiry to present.7

This he wrote at the beginning of his task. Almost a
decade later he wrote to Mrs. James A. Garfield:

Seeing in the newspapers a few days ago a letter from yourself to Col.
Rockwell relating to the preservation and care of President Garfield’s
speeches, letters and papers, emboldens me to offer a few suggestions which
are prompted by my own experience in the care and handling of the papers I
of President Lincoln.

My urgent advice to you is, not only that your husband’s papers should 1
be carefully preserved, but that you should at an early period institute some
methodical and systematic examination and arrangement. . . . Only those who
have undertaken similar labors have the remotest conception how painfully ;
tedious and difficult it is to examine and prepare such material for the biog- ;
rapher’s or historian’s use. Hurry in such a task is utterly impossible, and ,
one mind must practically accomplish the greater part if not the whole, in
order that unity may be preserved. Every document, leaf and scrap must be
deliberately scrutinized to ascertain its date, relation and historical value j

Not only this, but concurrently newspapers and public documents must'
be searched, persons must be written to, to find explanations and supply
omissions. For greater success and most perfect gleaning the present and;
contemporary period is in my judgment the most favorable. . . . Much will ^
be lost by delay. . . .

All this does not touch the matter of writing the General’s biography.
You can choose your own time for that. I speak merely of the preliminary iii
work. . . .You are yourself best competent to select someone of the General’s;
confidential friends who is intelligent, discriminating and thoroughly loyal;
to your husband’s memory. In addition he ought to be familiar with his1
personal history, his temper and habits of thought, his methods of labor and)
study, and if possible, familiar with the papers and materials themselves. In
such a task personal knowledge is of infinitely more value than mere literary!
ability or experience.8

How my father and John Hay divided the writing of
Abraham Lincoln: A History between them was a secret they
would never tell. They seemed to take a mischievous pleasure
in evading the question, saying they were coauthors, and that

7 John G. Nicolay to Robert Todd Lincoln, Apr. 1874.

8 John G. Nicolay to Mrs. James A. Garfield, Oct. 1881.

HELEN NICOLAY

271

was all the public need know. Still respecting their wishes, it
may now be said that they really had no settled plan about it.
Each chose the period or incident about which he felt at the
moment ready to write. Sometimes this resulted in their writ-
ing alternate chapters; sometimes one wrote continuously
nearly a whole volume. After a chapter was written it passed
many times between their two homes for criticism and correc-
, tion and revision. No work by two authors could be more
thoroughly a work of collaboration. I fancy that in the mere
matter of proofreading few have received the same care. I
know that the proof was painstakingly read nine times in my
father’s study — three times in galley, three times in page proof,
and three more after the pages had been cast, all this in addi-
’ tion to the readings Mr. Hay gave it, and the care lavished on
it by the publishers.

My father’s was the "one mind’’ that did the greater part
of arranging the Lincoln papers and searching out other ma-
terial, John Hay being busy with editorship during earlier
[j years of their literary partnership, and later holding the offices
of Ambassador to Great Britain, and Secretary of State under
Presidents McKinley and Theodore Roosevelt.

While Abraham Lincoln: A History and Abraham Lin-
coln: Complete Works are the only books on which their names
appeared on the title pages as coauthors, they continued to
feel the same interest and responsibility about the Lincoln
papers entrusted to their care.

JOHN RUSSELL OF BLUFFDALE

BY JOHN T. FLANAGAN

IN a gazetteer of 1837 the community of Bluff dale in Greene
County, Illinois, was pictured in the following words:

Bluffdale is a flourishing settlement, ten miles west of Carrollton, and !
under the bluffs that overhang the Illinois bottom. The land is rich, dry, ij
and beautifully situated for six miles in extent, under overhanging bluffs and j
precipices from which springs of "crystal waters” gush forth. The settlemen
is generally arranged along the bluffs from Apple creek to the Macoupir
from three to four miles from the Illinois river, and consists of fifty or sixt
families. The settlement of Bluffdale has two stores, one grocery, one taverr
one minister of the gospel, and a Baptist congregation, one post-office, on
school, and various mechanics.1

Captain Gideon Spencer had originally begun the settlemen
in 1821, but it was Vermont-born John Russell who realb
chose the site of the town and sponsored its growth. In 183-
Russell could call his hamlet "a union of all that is peculia
and striking in the Western landscape.”2 Land was cheap ant
husbandry easy; a newcoming Baptist preacher might not ge

monetary payment for ministerial services, but he could coun
upon twelve dollars a month and board for four months as hi
emolument for teaching.

John T. Flanagan is a professor of English at the University of
Illinois and has previously contributed several articles to this Journal.
He is the author of James Hall, Literary Pioneer of the Ohio Valley
and editor of America Is West, an Anthology of Middlewestern Life
and Literature. His book reviews frequently appear in Chicago
papers.

1 Illinois in 1837 (Philadelphia, 1837), 79-

2 John Russell, "Bluffdale,” Illinois Monthly Magazine (Feb. 1932), 11:20"!

272

JOHN T. FLANAGAN

273

One hundred years later the name of Bluffdale had dis-
appeared from the topographical map of Greene County, al-
though the name of Russell still appeared among the list of
freeholders. But the pleasant rural charm of the region still
remained, and John Russell of Bluffdale, obscure as he had
become,3 was still remembered by occasional readers of old
periodicals. For Russell, once the intimate and valued friend

of James Hall, of John Reynolds,
of John Mason Peck, once known
as preacher, educator, and cor-
respondent, was an important fig-
ure in the mid-nineteenth-century
Illinois Valley.

Like so many of the early cul-
tural leaders of the Midwest, John
Russell was a New Englander. He
was born in 1793, the son of a
Baptist preacher, stanchly Calvin-
ist in principle and rather impecu-
nious in fact. The people around
Cavendish, Vermont, were farm-
ers who did not look kindly on a
bookish education, and young
Russell got little encouragement when he expressed his inten-
tion of going to college. By devoting himself sporadically to
book binding, writing, and schoolteaching at Vergennes, where
he met his future wife, the boy paid his own expenses for two
years at Middlebury College; and in his last two years he was
aided financially by William Slade, later governor of Vermont.
In 1812 Russell, although still under twenty, published at
Windsor An Authentic History of the Vermont State Prison ,
a piece of hack work the sale of the copyright of which brought
him a little cash. Following his graduation from Middlebury

3 In a footnote in his edition of Daniel Harmon Brush’s Growing Up With
Southern Illinois, 1820 to 1861 (Chicago, 1944), 122, Milo Milton Quaife re-
marked that of John Russell, preacher and editor, "we have learned nothing.”

John Russell

274

JOHN RUSSELL OF BLUFFDALE

in 1818 Russell taught school briefly in Georgia, but when he
found his abolitionist sympathies clashing with the proslavery
views of his associates he left the state and joined his family in
Indiana, where they had temporarily stopped in their migra-
tion westward. At Whitewater, Indiana, he married his youth-
ful sweetheart, Laura Ann Spencer.4

From 1819 to 1825 Russell served as tutor to the sons of
Justus Post at $500 per annum in Bonhommie Bottom, Mis-
souri. Then followed a period of schoolteaching, at St. Louis,
at the high school in Vandalia, and in the seminary at Upper
Alton, subsequently Shurtleff College. John Mason Peck had
been instrumental in organizing Rock Spring Seminary in
1827, of which the Rev. Joshua Bradley was the first princi-
pal. When Bradley resigned after a year of service Russell
succeeded him, and later Russell was temporary principal at
the Upper Alton school during the absence of the Rev. Hub-
bell Loomis.5 Russell’s connection with Shurtleff College was
not of long duration officially, but his interest in the institu-
tion is apparent from his many references to it and from his :
occasional performances there as commencement orator.

For many years, however, Bluffdale and John Russell were
almost synonymous, and it is notable that Russell frequently I
used "Bluffdale” as a pseudonym. His residence in the Illinois
Valley community began in 1828. He was appointed the local
postmaster on October 9, 1829, a post which he and his son,
Spencer G. Russell, held almost continuously for seventy years. |f
But in Bluffdale he was also farmer, Sunday school teacher, |
minister, educator, and writer. Daniel Brush remembered

4 There is no sketch of John Russell in the Dictionary of American Biography ||
and he is not mentioned in Illinois, A Descriptive and Historical Guide. Spencer
G. Russell wrote a biographical sketch of his father in the Transactions of the Illinois j
State Historical Society, for the Year 1901 (Springfield, 1901), 103-7. Material on |>
Russell also appears in Newton Bateman, Historical Encyclopedia of Illinois with
Commemorative Biographies (Chicago, 1926); in John Leonard Conger, History of \
the Illinois River Valley (Chicago, 1932); in History of Greene County, Illinois
(Chicago, 1879); in History of Greene and Jersey Counties, Illinois (Springfield,
1885); in John Moses, Illinois, Historical and Statistical (Chicago, 1895).

5 Austen Kennedy de Blois, The Pioneer School (Chicago, 1900), pp. 29, 35,
42, 55; Jubilee Memorial of Shurtleff College, Upper Alton . III. (Alton, 1877),
pp. 3-4, 12.

JOHN T. FLANAGAN

275

years afterward how Russell had obliged his Sunday school
pupils to memorize verses of the New Testament and how he
had awarded certificates, duly signed and dated, to those
scholars who could recite accurately some three or four hun-
dred lines.6 Russell was licensed as a Baptist minister at Bluff-
dale on February 6, 1833, and was prominent in religious
circles, but he rarely preached. In 1837 and 1838 he edited
the Backwoodsman at Grafton, the first newspaper published
in Greene County; but even while laboring on this weekly
periodical he maintained his residence at Bluff dale and thought
nothing of long horseback rides if he could enjoy his week-
ends at home.7 In 1849 and 1850 he returned briefly to school-
teaching and conducted the academy at Carrollton, some miles
east of Bluffdale.

There was no literary or cultural movement of the time
in the state with which John Russell did not concern himself,
abortive as such activity often proved to be. He was active in
the first Illinois state historical society, which James Hall was
instrumental in organizing at Vandalia in 1827, and for sev-
eral years he did more than his share in promoting the Illi-
nois State Lyceum. Complete records of the lyceum are lack-
ing, but from its inception at Vandalia, December 8, 1831, to
1833, Russell was closely connected with it.

At the Vandalia meeting the Rev. William K. Stewart
was appointed chairman and James Hall was named secretary.
The Rev. Julian M. Sturtevant, the Rev. Thomas Lippincott,
[j James Hall, and John Russell were nominated as a committee
to prepare a constitution for the lyceum. The same group with
the addition of John Mason Peck formed a membership com-
mittee and chose fifteen members, among them Henry Eddy,
!, Edward Coles, Sidney Breese, and Edward Beecher, then the
president of Illinois College. The first slate of officers included

| Beecher as president, James Hall and Edward Coles as vice-

6 Brush, Southern Illinois, Quaife, ed., 43.

7 Oscar B. Hamilton, ed., History of Jersey County, Illinois (Chicago, 1919), 250.

276

JOHN RUSSELL OF BLUFFDALE

presidents, John Russell as secretary, and Maro Reed as li-
brarian. Annual meetings were to take place at Jacksonville
and membership was not to exceed twenty-five. The purpose
of the lyceum, it might be remarked, was almost identical with
the expressed purpose of the state historical society: to dis-
seminate knowledge, record history, collect fossils and relics,
secure information about minerals, agriculture, flora and
fauna, topography, navigation, soils, and climate, and in gen-
eral to gather and preserve all data relative to the country and
its inhabitants.8

A meeting was held at Illinois College on August 14,
1832, and the regular meeting took place at the Jacksonville
Presbyterian church two days later. Papers were presented,
and the group voted to demand a contribution from each mem- i
ber annually as a condition of membership. There is no evi-
dence that John Russell abided by this rule, but a paper by
John Mason Peck on early settlement in Illinois was so well
received that it was subsequently published in the Illinois
Monthly Magazine. The August 15, 1833, meeting at Jack-
sonville was postponed because of the incidence of spasmodic
cholera, but the adjourned meeting was held October 3, and j
the original officers were apparently renamed. Edward Beecher
addressed the group on common school education, and Stur- j
tevant spoke on education in Illinois. The extant records in
the handwriting of John Russell include a complete list of j
the members elected at Vandalia and at Jacksonville, and in-
dicate that another annual meeting was scheduled for August,
1834, at Jacksonville. There is little further evidence about
the progress of the Illinois State Lyceum or about John Rus-
sell’s share in it, but it is obvious that for several years Russell
as the duly elected secretary, played a conspicuous role in
publicizing the work of the lyceum and in arranging the pro- ji;

gram- J"

Little is known of Russell’s activities outside Illinois, but

s MS records of the Illinois State Lyceum in the Illinois State Historical Library.

JOHN T. FLANAGAN

277

there is evidence that he twice left his Bluff dale home for ex-
tended residence elsewhere. In 1841 and 1842 he edited the
Louisville Advertiser, a paper founded in 1818 by Shadrach
Penn. And for a fairly long span of time — his son claimed
eight years — he served as principal of the Spring Hill Acad-
emy and superintendent of schools in East Feliciana Parish,
Louisiana. The closing years of his life were spent at Bluff-
dale, where his accomplishments in mathematics and lan-
guages were highly esteemed and where he could utilize his
rather extensive private library. In 1862 the University of Chi-
cago conferred upon him the honorary LL. D. degree. Russell
died in 1863 and was buried in Bluff dale, the community
which he had done so much to build and preserve in the eyes
of the public.9

Spencer G. Russell in his biographical sketch of his father
emphasized John Russell’s piety, gentleness, generosity to
others, and conspicuous failure to enrich himself when others
were in want.10 Thomas Ford in his history of Illinois spoke
of him as "a man of genius and a fine writer,”11 and John
Moses termed him "perhaps the most graceful and scholarly
writer of this period in the Prairie State.”12 To Daniel Brush,
a Bluff dale boy at the time, Russell was kindhearted, studious,
painstaking, a man who was a great lover of learning but was
never too busy to show his students the treasures of his library.
Probably the most detailed eulogy accorded Russell by one
of his contemporaries is that of John Reynolds. Reynolds
- knew Russell well and once proposed to him that they should
M co-operate on a history of the Black Hawk War, Reynolds
! to furnish documents, Russell to do the writing. There is also
evidence that Russell wrote the opening chapters of Reynolds’

9 There is an unsubstantiated story to the effect that John Russell once enter-
■ tained Charles Dickens at his Greene County home when the English novelist was

visiting the St. Louis area in 1842. John Drury has printed an interesting picture
of the Russell dwelling in his Old Illinois Houses (Springfield, 1949), 43.

10 Trans. III. State Hist. Soc. 1901, p. 106.

11 Thomas Ford, A History of Illinois (Chicago, 1854), 231.

12 Moses, Illinois, 1:392.

278

JOHN RUSSELL OF BLUFFDALE

volume My Life and Times.13 The ex-governor of Illinois de-
scribed Russell in the following words:

He has devoted his life to study, and now stands in the front rank of
science and literature. Nature bestowed on him a mind capacious and
strong, and his labors have achieved much celebrity. He has bestowed much
of his time and talent on the study of the languages, and is a scholar not
only in the dead languages but also in the modern tongues. He understands j
the French and German languages almost as well as he does the English, but
I think he excels in his chaste, beautiful, and elegant composition. His i
style is smdoth, classic, and polished, and his composition flows on in such :
harmony and elegance that it often reaches the elevated region of poetry.14 |

Every writer who has alluded to Russell at all has com-
mented on his long career as a writer for periodicals, ranging
from the Western Monthly Magazine to the Alton Courier.
Most of these fugitive contributions, buried in obscure peri-
odicals, are beyond recovery, a circumstance which, because
of their nature, is not particularly regrettable.15 But others j
such as occasional commencement addresses which reveal Rus-
sell’s philosophy and his stories or tales of western life are j
much more significant. Indeed the chief reason for striving
to exhume the once considerable fame of John Russell is his
ability to capture the spirit and color of the life he knew. Since
Russell’s scattered sketches were never collected in book form, !
one feels justified in discussing representative items individ-

In the days when any western imprint was something of :
a rarity, commencement addresses were more common than
some other forms of literature. And several of Russell’s ora-
tions before graduating classes deserve notice. On July 29, !
1840, Russell delivered the annual commencement address I

13 Letter from William M. Russell (grandson of John Russell) to Mrs. Jessie!
Palmer Weber, January 26, 1926, in the possession of the Illinois State Historical j
Library. The Library also has letters from John Reynolds to Russell, dated December
10, 1833, March 24, 1834, and April 19, 1834, in which Reynolds discusses the
proposed history of the Black Hawk War.

14 John Reynolds, My Own Times (Chicago, 1879), 278.

15 It is quite possible that Russell contributed to the following denominational
periodicals, complete files of which are difficult to find: Baptist Tract and Youth’s
Magazine, Philadelphia, 1827-1835; Western Baptist Review, Frankfort and Louis-
ville, 1845-1851; Northwestern Baptist, Chicago, 1842-1844; Baptist Monthly, Jack-
sonville, 1860-1861.

ually.

JOHN T. FLANAGAN

279

at Shurtleff College, speaking to the graduating class on the
claims of education. Characteristically he developed the thesis
that every human being has a right to be educated, "an in-
herent, an indefeasible, an inalienable claim upon his country
to an education that will qualify him to discharge, ably dis-
charge, the high and important duties that will devolve upon
him as a citizen of the world, and an heir of immortality.”16
He analyzed the Prussian system of education and asserted its
superiority despite the military despotism in which the coun-
try was enmeshed; in comparison the American system seemed
to Russell slipshod and imperfect, although he thought that
! Illinois was ahead of most states in educational progress. He
praised New England and the educational heritage of the
Puritans, and made specific recommendations about the con-
struction of suitable school buildings and the employment
of qualified teachers. The classics as always won his support,
and after warning the Shurtleff students against the avid pur-
suit of wealth he observed that superficialness and excitement
had become the prominent traits in the character of the times.17

Some twelve years later, on June 24, 1852, Russell de-
livered another commencement address at Shurtleff. Begin-
i ning rather floridly by comparing the graduating seniors
f starting their human pilgrimage to the Arab pilgrim cross-
ing the Sahara Desert, he spoke about the marvelous advan-
tages accruing from the printing press and asserted that, de-
spite the spread of knowledge, the United States was the only
! country on the globe where man could enjoy all the inalien-
able rights of his nature. Why, he asked his young auditors,
Ijdo so many of the capable and even the trained fail to achieve?

‘ And his answer was that they lacked a single purpose to which
jthey could devote every ounce of their energy. Developing
this thesis further, he remarked that John Jacob Astor created
Ihis fur empire, John Howard won fame as a philanthropist,

i 16 John Russell, The Claims of Education: an Address Delivered at Shurtleff
| College on the Evening of Commencement (Alton, 1840), 3-
17 Ibid., 7.

280

JOHN RUSSELL OF BLUFFDALE

Peter the Hermit fired western civilization to begin the Cru-
sades, and even the Jesuits built up their militant and far-
reaching world order because of indomitable prosecution of
one single aim. Thus his exordium took on force as he charged
his audience with these words :

Commence your career of active life with some well-defined object be-
fore you, some purpose worthy of attainment. Bend all your powers and
faculties to its accomplishment, and with the blessing of God, you cannot \
fail of success. The field of active and honorable exertion that lies stretched
out before you is boundless ,18

Even in 1852 such gospel in America was no novelty, but not
many commencement orators enunciated the creed so per-
suasively or so effectively.

Russell gave a third commencement address to the mem-
bers of the Philosophian Literary Society of McKendree Col- «
lege on July 5, 1854. This time his theme was the need for
real education and the dignity of honest toil. He began by
celebrating the opulence and magnitude of the nation, and then I
introduced the topic of education. He did not define an edu-
cated man as one who merely owned a college diploma. "I
consider that individual an educated man,” he said, "whose !
mind has been thoroughly trained and disciplined, by what- |i
ever process it may have been effected, even though he mayi
have availed himself of the resources of the English language, |
only.”™ The classic languages and mathematics were useful
tools, he asserted, but real power was exerted by the man who
could write and speak the English language with force and;
elegance. Then he shifted his attention to social classes and;
spoke with scorn of an American or a republican aristocracy.
The true nobility, he thought, the real sovereigns, were to be
found among farmers and artisans, men of strength and in-
dustry and perseverance. Cast your lot with the people, he
—

18 John Russell, An Address, Delivered Before the Alpha Zeta Society of Shurt-
leff College (Alton, 1852), 22. For this and other pamphlets by John Russell, I
am indebted to Mr. Franklin J. Meine of Chicago, whose private library is rich in
such material.

19 John Russell, Belong to the People. The Fifth Annual Address, Delivered
Before the Philosophian Literary Society of McKendree College (St. Louis, 1854), 5.

JOHN T. FLANAGAN

281

told his audience, if you would be truly happy and useful.
Be skeptical of mere wealth or empty honor. Preserve the
heritage of liberty. And he warned against the dangers of
lynch law or mob hysteria, alluding to the treatment of the
Mormons in Illinois as a crucial example which all would re-
member. Speaking finally as a minister, he commented on the
colossal vanity of piling up earthly honors which would shrink
with the cold kiss of the grave.

But commencement oratory is likely to be dreary reading
a hundred years after the occasion which called it forth, and
there is none of the intellectual stimulation in Russell’s ad-
dresses that fired Emerson’s Phi Beta Kappa speech at Har-
vard in 1837. More interesting today are his efforts to capture
the manners and life of the time in sketches which are often
less than half fictitious.

Among the items which Russell contributed to James
Hall’s Western Monthly Magazine were two tales of western
life, "The Spectre Hunter, a Legend of the West” and "The
Emigrant.” Both were set in a period anterior to his own, and
both reveal the rough, wild society of early Illinois and Mis-
souri.20

"The Spectre Hunter” is the story of a strange, solitary
i figure who was seen in the rugged territory near the Cahokia
mounds or in the deep woods on either bank of the Mississippi,
, often at night or in the lightning flashes of storms. His strik-
ing appearance, a tall, erect figure, bareheaded and barefoot-
;ed, his singular costume of sackcloth girdled tightly with a
wildcat skin belt to which were appended powder horn and
| knife, and his mysterious goings and comings had made him
something of a legend in 1769 when a French trader and an
Indian guide saw him in the Missouri country. Five years
later a certain St. Louis priest summoned the faithful to a

20 John Russell, "The Spectre Hunter, A Legend of the West,” Western Monthly
Magazine (Oct., 1833), I: 458-466; "The Emigrant,” ibid. (Feb., 1835), III: 67-82.
The first story was reprinted in the Illinois Daily Journal [Springfield], March 14

282

JOHN RUSSELL OF BLUFFDALE

funeral service, at which he revealed the identity of the mys-
terious wilderness figure.

Don Manuel was a ranking Spanish grandee, handsome,
opulent, powerful, and happily married to a young wife. His
sister Isabella made her home with him. On a certain occasion
Don Manuel was summoned into the country to inspect some
of his lands. On his rather sudden return he came upon a
richly dressed cavalier paying court to his wife, who obvi- j
ously rather enjoyed the homage. Impulsively, Don Manuel :
drove his dagger into the body of the cavalier, only to dis- j
cover that he had fatally wounded his sister who had dressed f
in the costume to enjoy the pleasure of an actress in a new •
role. Don Manuel’s subsequent life was tragedy piled on
tragedy. He was imprisoned, he lost his estate, he became
temporarily insane, and finally, lucid once more, he and his
servant Diego managed to escape to America by feigning
membership in one of the mendicant orders. In the Mississippi
Valley Don Manuel spent his time brooding and living the
wild life of a hunter. Diego set up shop as a trader in St.
Louis and secretly supplied his master with food and powder.,1;
In this fashion did the Spanish nobleman expiate his crime
in the wilds of America.

"The Emigrant” is the story of William Henderson, a| I
Kentuckian who started out from Mason County in his native
state in 1815 for the Boonslick country in Missouri. Hender-
son was a successful farmer, the owner of 300 acres and two :
slaves, but the greater wealth of his neighbors incited him to - 1
try his fortune elsewhere. He first put the slaves and his house- 1:;
hold goods on a keelboat bound for Missouri, but as he waslit
unwilling to entrust his wife and two daughters to such prel
carious transportation, he engaged a light wagon for their fi t
and himself and proceeded to set out overland. The Henderiwi
sons reached Illinois safely and in the vicinity called Biflfc
Prairie happened to run into a well dressed, courteous stranger®
Since any traveler in those parts was a pleasant sight to th( | -

JOHN T. FLANAGAN

283

emigrants, Henderson rapidly became acquainted with the
man, one Marvin, and soon discovered that Marvin was also
on a land-buying expedition to Missouri, that he knew the
country well, but that he was temporarily without funds.
Henderson, grateful for company and advice, offered to stake
the stranger until he could tap his own resources. Marvin
acceded instantly, and then proposed that since the distance
was great and time was a factor, Henderson should leave his
family with an acquaintance near Big Prairie and should go
on alone with him.

This plan was followed. Mrs. Henderson and her daugh-
ters remained with the family of Job Corby, while Henderson
continued in the wagon with a driver thoughtfully furnished
by Marvin. Not long afterward Henderson took a heavily
drugged drink and when he recovered consciousness found
i himself in a primitive cabin in a region unknown to him, his
captors meanwhile having divided his possessions among them.
Henderson, still stupefied and powerless to act, heard Marvin
and his accomplices discuss plans to dispose of their victim
and to leave the country. He saw an open grave gaping at him
in the earthen floor of the cabin, and he was momentarily
;; expecting the fatal shot when a commotion was heard with-
out and Job Corby, leading a group of regulators, appeared in
time to rescue Henderson from certain death. Summary justice
was about to be done on the spot when Corby recognized in
• one of the ruffians a renegade son, and his pleas were suf-
. ficient to persuade the regulators to substitute exile for the
death penalty. Henderson and his family enjoyed a providen-
ijtial reunion.

Some of Russell’s later work found serial publication in
; the Alton Courier and was reissued in pamphlet form from
the press of that newspaper. Among the stories thus published
were "The Mormoness; or, the Trials of Mary Maverick, a
Narrative of Real Events," probably one of the first Action-
ized treatments of the Mormon theme, "Claudine Lavalle; or,

284 JOHN RUSSELL OF BLUFFDALE

the First Convict," and "Flora Jarvis; or, the Young Wife’s
Plea for the Maine Law." Although these tales possess some
of the sensationalism implicit in the cheap sensational fiction
then being written by O. J. Victor, Emerson Bennett, Ned
Buntline, and Edward S. Ellis, they do reflect the atmosphere f
of an unsettled society which Russell himself had observed i
rather closely.21

Like so many of Russell’s tales the story of Mary Mav-
erick is basically true; indeed his son remarked that it was j
based on stories told at the Russell home in Bluff dale by Sid-
ney Rigdon and Parley Pratt, the Mormon leaders who had
fled the fury of Missouri mobs. James Maverick, the husband
of the story, was drawn from an actual Baptist preacher named
Merrick who had been converted to Mormonism.22 Certainly
the religious friction, the persecution, the anti-Mormon feel-
ing, and the violence are authentic.

The story opens with the arrival of a Mormon preacher
at a settlement called Sixteen Mile Prairie in Greene County,
Illinois, at a time when Mormonism aroused more resentment :
than curiosity. As Russell observed, "It was a subject of wonder
that any human being of sane mind could be deluded into
a belief in Mormonism.’’23 James Maverick, one of the farmers ;
who was informed about the missionary’s appearance, was
bitterly antagonistic, but his wife Mary, out of a spirit of toler-
ance and fair play, went to hear the Mormon speak. A little!
later James Maverick was surprised to learn that the visiting :
preacher, a man named Wilmer, was the very person who had
once befriended him while he was making a difficult crossing!
of the Wabash Valley and who had housed him during a sub-
sequent illness. Incapable of being inhospitable in such a;
situation, Maverick soon welcomed Wilmer to his home.

21 "The Mormoness; or, the Trials of Mary Maverick, a Narrative of Real Events,”
appeared in the Alton Weekly Courier, July and August, 1853; "Flora Jarvis; or, I
the Young Wife’s Plea for the Maine Law” was serialized in the same paper, June
and July, 1854. The second story apparently was not republished in pamphlet form.

22 Russell, Trans. 111. State Hist. Soc., 1901, p. 105.

23 The Mormoness: or, The Trials of Mary Maverick (Alton, 1853), 38.

JOHN T. FLANAGAN

285

At first Maverick successfully resisted indoctrination into
Mormonism, although he lost some of his rancorous opposi-
tion. But the gentle persistence of the Mormon evangelists
who visited the region and their fervent preaching rather than
the logic of their doctrine made a deep impression. Finally
Maverick, despite the scorn of his father, a judge and sub-
stantial local figure, was converted to the Mormon faith, and
he and Mary Maverick were officially welcomed into the com-
munion of Latter-Day Saints. Their next move was to sell
their possessions in Greene County in order to join the Mor-
mon Zion in frontier Missouri. The Mavericks reached Zion
almost precisely at the time when popular animosity against
Mormonism had reached its zenith. Shortly after their arrival
an assault was made upon the village. Maverick was killed,
and Mary herself endured the horror of seeing a brute named
Vorne drag her son Eddy from his hiding place and put a
bullet through his head. Widowed and childless all in a
moment, Mary Maverick fled with the other Mormons to find
brief solace across the Mississippi at Nauvoo.

Despite her difference in opinion with her father-in-law,
iMary Maverick returned to Judge Maverick’s house where
;she found a kind reception. But a long stay seemed unendur-
able, and she resolved to bury her grief in philanthropy. For
a time she acted as companion to a young girl dying of con-
sumption, and she lived in a Catholic household in St. Louis.
Later she became a nurse among the Indians living beyond
;the borders of Missouri, and voluntarily brought medical aid
(to a Shawnee village afflicted with Asiatic cholera. While in
tithe process of these ministrations she was brought to a white
man suffering from arrow and knife wounds. Despite her
: recognition of the victim as Vorne, the murderer of her son,,
she nursed him back to health without revealing her identity.
Later Vorne in gratitude and admiration tried to force mar-
riage upon her, and when he eventually realized who she was
the shock drove him insane; this experience coming on top of

286

JOHN RUSSELL OF BLUFFDALE

physical exhaustion sent Mary Maverick to her grave. Thus,
were the trials of a gentle and philanthropic spirit terminated.

The protagonist of "Claudine Lavalle; or, the First Con-
vict” is also a kind and well-meaning woman victimized by
society, but the setting of the tale is St. Charles, Missouri,
early in the nineteenth century. The American administration
following the Louisiana Purchase had just succeeded the
Spanish, and the local judge, although French in origin, was I
loyal to his adopted country. On the second Monday in May,
1805, he was called upon to preside at the trial of Claudine
Lavalle, indicted on circumstantial evidence for the crime of ;
murdering her brother and the first person to be accused of
a capital offense under the new regime. Public feeling ran
high against Claudine, since everyone considered the evidence
against her to be damning and all were afraid that her beauty
and youth might win her a reprieve. Only Father Laroche,
the local priest and for most of her life her guardian, believed
her innocent.

The trial proceeded without particular incident. Fairly i
complete external evidence against Claudine was produced
by the state, and Claudine, wishing above all to preserve the
reputation of her murdered brother, said nothing by way of:
exonerating herself. Following a jury verdict of guilty, the |
judge pronounced a sentence of death by hanging a few weeks
hence. It was then that Father Laroche took a hand. Going!
privately to the recently appointed territorial governor, Gen-
eral James Wilkinson, the priest procured a complete pardon
for Claudine on condition that she at once leave the region
and not return within five years. Claudine vanished immedi-
ately, and when she reappeared in the story much later it was
as the wife of a New Orleans planter.

Flashbacks then reveal the real course of events. Claudine
and her brother Pierre were the orphaned children of a fairly!
wealthy gentleman and would, on coming of age, share hisj
estate. An uncle in the meanwhile had charge of the estate,

JOHN T. FLANAGAN

287

and the parish priest supervised the children’s education.
Claudine matured into a charming and talented young lady,
but Pierre proved more and more unstable. Eventually he be-
gan to associate with an unscrupulous adventurer, Robertson,
who wished to secure both the Lavalle money and Claudine
as a wife. She rejected all his advances, but more and more
he induced Pierre to enter illicit enterprises until Pierre’s fear
of publicity impelled him to obey Robertson’s every command.
The climax came when Robertson planned with Pierre’s aid
to abduct Claudine. When this plan was frustrated, Robert-
son deliberately killed Pierre with an ax, threw the ax into
Claudine’s bedroom, and fled from the scene. Although no mo-
live for the crime was established in the courtroom, the prose-
cution found it easy enough to convict Claudine of murder.

The sequel, as in most of John Russell’s stories, was more
Dleasant. Claudine was placed by the priest in a New Orleans
:onvent. From their she went to the home of a wealthy lady
who wished a companion, and it was her son, Raimond d’Iber-
ville, whom she eventually married. In the final chapter the
D’Ibervilles happened to visit a charity hospital in the city and
Dame across a dying man. The man turned out to be the very
loberston who had murdered Pierre Lavalle and who had
[brought the sentence of death upon Claudine. In haste Robert-
son penned a confession which not only cleared up the murder
put exonerated Claudine from any guilt. The final touch of
boetic justice in the fiction is the arrival of the aged priest,
7ather Laroche, in New Orleans, his reunion with Claudine,
Imd his finding of a last refuge in the D’Iberville family.24

"Flora Jarvis; or, the Young Wife’s Plea for the Maine
.aw” is, as the title implies, a temperance tract disguised as
iction.25 The story opens in Vermont to which state an Illi-

24 Claudine Lavalle; or, The First Convict (Alton, 1853).

25 An editorial comment prefixed to the first installment of the story in the Alton
> oily Morning Courier of June 24, 1854, reads as follows: "We commence this
lorning an interesting story by an old and pleasant literary acquaintance of our
;aders, Prof. JOHN RUSSELL, of Bluffdale. The name of the author is a sufficient
uarantee of its merit both in style and matter.”

288

JOHN RUSSELL OF BLUFFDALE

nois lawyer had gone to settle an inheritance case. The reader
is soon introduced to a Vermont attorney named Jarvis, who
has brought up his only daughter Flora as if she were a boy.
Flora was trained in music, painting, and cookery; she had
mastered French and German; she had learned a good deal
about fishing and shooting; and to cap the climax she had
read so much Blackstone that a group of legal friends of
Squire Jarvis in a mock ceremony had admitted her to the j
Vermont bar. But cholera struck the town and left Flora an
orphan at the age of seventeen with almost no financial re- j
sources. She determined not to accept the half-hearted relief
offered by relatives but instead decided to find a rural school-
teaching job in Illinois — the Far West!

Not long after her arrival in Illinois she married a Ken- ;
tucky physician, Dr. Carroll, a temperate and kind man. Un- ;
fortunately he was offered some rare wine, drank to excess, |
and abused Flora soon after their marriage. Removal to an- :
other community was followed by Dr. Carroll’s entrance into s
a local grog shop, where in a drunken fit he became quarrel-
some and killed a man. The physician was indicted for murder, !|
but Flora pleaded eloquently and adroitly for her husband’s!
life, blaming the state of Illinois for licensing unprincipled)
liquor sellers, and won a verdict of not guilty. On the steps1
of the courthouse she lectured the sympathetic crowd: "Wives,
and mothers, and sisters, and daughters of Illinois! when the!
Maine Law shall be extended over our prairies, take your
shoes from off your feet, for you will then stand on holy
ground.”26 Flora’s triumph was double, for not only did she
free her husband, but she aroused the citizens to descend or
Jones’s groggery, destroying his stock and driving the pro-i
prietor out of town.

As literary achievements these stories of John Russell’:!
have several distinct merits. The fact that a substantial bit o
actuality is involved in all the plots gives them the tone of au

26 Alton Daily Morning Courier, July 6, 1854.

tas

JOHN T. FLANAGAN

289

thenticity which they might otherwise lack. The events are
probable, and the characters play plausible roles. Russell did
not shine as a narrator and his tales have slight dramatic value,
nor could he write dialogue which resembled actual human
speech. But it is noteworthy that he seldom employed lurid
details merely because they were lurid, and that, considering
his training and the age in which he wrote, he was surprisingly
free from didacticism. Russell preached less in his tales than
did many of his contemporary writers, although it is true that
the main impact of most of his fiction is hortatory. Moreover,
his style is clear, unadorned, straightforward, without the
flourishes and displays of rhetoric so relished at the time. He
used neither irony nor humor, but he wrote simply and with
considerable effect. For such truthful stories of early Illinois
and Missouri without prolixity or maudlin sentiment one can
only be grateful.

A word should also be said about Russell’s views in gen-
eral. A Baptist minister by inclination and practice if not by
orthodox training, he was devoted to religion, but his toler-
ance prevented him from ever becoming a blind sectary. If
any doctrine won his fervent support more than others it was
temperance, and temperance he preached throughout his life.
His first great literary success, indeed, was an allegorical tale
. called "The Venomous Worm” in which he condemned the
still as the root of human evil and attacked drink as vicious.
Originally written for the St. Charles Missourian, "The Ven-
. omous Worm” was widely reprinted in both eastern and west-
ern papers and was included in such popular texts as the Mc-
Guffey readers.27

The Golden Rule principle of morality and the conviction
; that good deeds eventually brought their own compensation
were also deeply ingrained in Russell. Among other tracts dis-
. guised as fiction which he wrote for the American Baptist

27 John Reynolds reprinted the allegory in My Own Times (Chicago, 1879),
279-80; see also William H. McGuffey, McGuf fey’s New Fifth Eclectic Reader (Cin-
cinnati, 1866), 192-93.

290

JOHN RUSSELL OF BLUFFDALE

Publication Society is Going to Mill, a rambling narrative of
some ninety pages which develops the thesis that good will
eventually produce good, in this world as well as in the next.
The tale is set in Lakeville in the Illinois Valley, a community
suspiciously like Bluff dale, and its focal character is one Rich-
ard Coleman, a wealthy Baptist merchant of St. Louis, who
narrates how he was able to rescue the granddaughter of a
girl who once befriended him. Even this Sunday school tale
has some of Russell’s creative skill in its pictures of rural life.28

Moreover, Russell supported the cause of the worker and
had little interest in any kind of aristocracy. Long before
Thorstein Veblen pontificated about conspicuous waste he
felt that a leisure class was parasitic. Russell’s views about the
dignity of labor were expressed in the McKendree College
commencement address of 1854; they also appear somewhat
prophetically in an article entitled "Three Hundred Years
Hence” which he wrote in 1830.29 Again using the allegory as I
a literary form, Russell described a dream in which he visited
St. Louis three centuries in the future, saw a profusion of at-
tractive cottages flanking broad highways on the east side of j
the Mississippi, observed forests of masts denoting the ships
which plied the great river, and, forty years before the Eads
Bridge materialized, envisioned iron spans over which traffic
flowed into the largest city of the western hemisphere. But
his dream came to an abrupt end when he ventured into the)
metropolis only to discover that smoke-blackened air and
filthy, narrow streets made living conditions deplorable for
the working class, while militant class warfare had broken out,!,
with soldiers in the streets shooting down refractory proletar-1
ians. To John Russell, student, educator, writer, agrarian, the;
industrial future was not altogether roseate.

28 John Russell, Going to Mill (Philadelphia, n.d. [1858]).

29 Bluff dale [John Russell], "Three Hundred Years Hence,” Illinois Monthly
Magazine (Nov., 1830), I: 49-55. In his Growth of American Thought (New.
York, 1943), Merle Curti cites this allegory and calls it "a remarkable sketch on
social justice” (p. 263) but he fails to identify its author as John Russell.

JOHN T. FLANAGAN

291

In pre-Civil-War Illinois, when writing was less a profes-
sion than an avocation, John Russell was an interesting and
important figure. He belongs with such men as Peter Cart-
wright, John Mason Peck, James Hall, and Morris Birkbeck, all
of whom combined busy practical lives with the adroit use of
the pen. Given a wider audience and a more stable medium of
publication, Russell might well have figured in the history of
American fiction.

Vrm~ T. — ^

— C- ass

CIVIL WAR COMEDY

The following anecdote is from Camp-Fire Sketches and Battle-Field
| Echoes of the Rebellion, (W. C. King & Co., Springfield, Mass., 1887) in
i the Alfred W. Stern Civil War Collection of the Illinois State Historical
. Library:

When I was in the service we used
'to tuck it pretty hard to the raw re-
j emits, sometimes. I remember one
fellow in particular, who joined our
[[regiment when we were in Virginia.

He was a raw-boned fellow, who had
if come to the war to gain a big com-
mission in the army. He was about
( | as green a chap in military affairs as
• I ever saw. This recruit was always
[[talking about how he wanted us boys
| to teach him all the ins and outs of
ua soldier’s life. He had heard a good
ideal about picket post duty, and was
i awfully concerned lest he would bring
jup wanting in this capacity.

Most of the boys found out, by
what the raw reemit said about it,

that his idea of picket post duty was
being able to balance one’s self on a
picket post. So one day we knocked
a picket off an old fence, stuck it in
the ground, and told him to stand up
on it and practice balancing awhile.
Every man in the regiment kept his
face as sober as a judge, and the re-
emit worked away trying to balance
himself on that picket post till he
was all worn out. The captain of my
company came up about dusk and
saw what we were doing with the
poor fellow, gave us all a good blow-
ing up, and comforted the recruit as
best he could. Ever after that time
that fellow went by the name of the
Picket Post. But he was a brave
soldier, and won a captain’s laurels.

A TOUR OF ILLINOIS IN 1842

BY MENTOR L. WILLIAMS

OF the scores of visitors who journeyed through Illinois
in the dramatic though depression-ridden 1840’s,1 few
were better equipped to comment on the passing scene than
James Kirke Paulding, retired Secretary of the Navy and close
friend of ex-President Martin Van Buren. Fie and Van Buren
set out on a long and leisurely tour of the South and West in
February, 1842 — a journey that occupied nearly five months
and covered more than seven thousand miles. The object of
the trip was political. The Kinderhook politician had lost
caste in the West during his presidency by advocating an in-
dependent treasury, which, to the Westerners, meant the end;
of their high-flying, speculative schemes based on govern-
ment supported state banks. Little Van had salvaged his plan
by backing the pre-emption measures through which the bona
fide settler could purchase his land at the minimum price of
$1.25 per acre. A populace, deluded by Whig propaganda,
turned "Matty” down in 1840: he drank from silver coolers,;
ate from gold service, perfumed his whiskers, and slept in a

1 Other visitors in the forties included Margaret Fuller, William Cullen Bryant,
Horace Greeley, Thurlow Weed, J. S. Buckingham, Philip Hone, John Davis, and
Charles Dickens.

Mentor L. Williams is associate professor of English at the
Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago and the author of numer-
ous articles for historical magazines. At present he is engaged in
an extensive study of Henry Rowe Schoolcraft, the famous Mid-
west explorer and ethnologist of the early nineteenth century.

292

MENTOR L. WILLIAMS

293

"silken bed of down.”2 Harrison and Tyler were the popular
choices over the "depression-making Democrats.” If he was
to have a chance for the 1844 nomination, he had to repair his
political fences in the South and West. By 1842, Van Buren’s
fortunes were looking up. Tyler’s approval of Clay’s high
tariff had alienated the South, and his veto of the bill to dis-
tribute the proceeds from the sale of public lands to the states
had infuriated the West. Now, if ever, was the time to move
in on a disrupted Whig Party.

The Van Buren-Paulding junket was carefully planned.
It took them into all parts of the South and the frontier West,
where everyone could have a look at this aristocrat who posed
as Jackson’s successor to the Democratic mantle and see what
manner of man he was. They swung through the South to
New Orleans, traveled up the Mississippi to Memphis, and
from there went on to Nashville, Tennessee, where they visited
Old Hickory. It was from the Hermitage that Paulding wrote
a niece, Margarette Kemble, of the "royal” receptions they met
with everywhere:

On landing [at Nashville] we were received into the bosom of a crowd
of some thousands whom I wished in the bottom of the Red Sea, for I have
a great dislike to being pushed about here and there, and having my toes
trod on by fellows with hob nails in their shoes. I met one of them at
Columbia the other day, in the crowd in the yard of the Court House, who
planted his foot on one of my corns with such emphasis that the print of

the hob nails remains on my boot to this day I shook hands with about

five thousand people, some of whom squeezed my fingers together so tight
that it took two days for them to separate, and for that time I was web-
fingered.3

2 Tippecanoe Song Book (Philadelphia, 1840), 56.

In another song from the same volume (p. 46), Paulding was lampooned:

"And next,” says Paulding, "I do wish
To novels I had stuck.

For writing them would ne’er have made
Of me so lame a duck.

”Dea’ Matty, we must soon go back
To quiet Kinderhook,

And in your garret I will write
Another shilling book.”

3 May 2, 1842. Quoted in W. I. Paulding, Literary Life of James K. Paulding
(New York, 1867), 286. Miss Kemble was the daughter of Gouverneur Kemble,
New York Senator.

294

A TOUR OF ILLINOIS IN 1842

After a pleasant sojourn with Jackson, they went, with the
master’s blessing, to Ashland to pay their respects to Henry
Clay.4 After Lexington, they visited Frankfort, Cincinnati,
Columbus, and Indianapolis. In June Van Buren turned up at
Rochester, Illinois. There he was visited by a party of loyal
Springfield Democrats who brought with them as chief enter-
tainer the most able Whig of the region, Abraham Lincoln.
Lincoln and Van Buren swapped stories far into the night, and
Van was so amused that his sides were sore from laughing.5
Meanwhile, Paulding had gone back down the Ohio and up
the Mississippi to St. Louis and the Illinois River and had
taken passage on a shallow draft steamer which carried him
as far as Ottawa. From there he journeyed overland to Chi-
cago6 where he rejoined Van Buren’s entourage and followed
the Great Lakes route back to New York.

Paulding was an accomplished traveler and a good ob-
server. He had, as Secretary of the Board of Navy Commis-
sioners (1815-1823), as Navy Agent for New York (1823-
1838), and as Secretary of Navy (1838-1841), been required
to make many trips into various parts of the country; one such
into the South in 1816 led to the publication of Letters from
the South (1817) and The Backwoodsman (1818). He was
a capable writer with a reputation for novels, satires, and
sketches. His descriptive powers were above average and few
surpassed him in humor and satire. As a Democratic politician,
he understood the issues of the day and could write intelli-
gently about land speculation, boom towns, canals and internal
improvements, tariffs, low prices, and the desirability of a
democratic form of government. Even more important, he
could give his observations a stylistic flavor that the journal-

4 Dennis T. Lynch, An Epoch and a Man (New York, 1929), passim.

5 William H. Herndon and Jesse W. Weik, Abraham Lincoln (New York, 1916),
I: 248-50.

6 In Chicago a barrel of stale cabbage was put in the public square, probably a
dig at Van Buren’s Dutch ancestry. Several of the songs in the Tippecanoe Song
Book referred unfavorably to cabbage and kraut; e.g., p. 50:

No more we’ll trust to cabbage-heads
Or Kinderhook physicians.

MENTOR L. WILLIAMS

295

ist or diary- writing promoter or settler could not possibly
achieve. For that reason, his narrative of a trip through Illinois
in 1842, when the state was in the throes of canal fever and
suffering from a case of depression jitters, is especially valu-
able.7 Paulding’s narrative follows:

THE ILLINOIS AND THE PRAIRIES

That gallant officer and enterprising traveler, Major Long, did the Illi-
[ nois great injustice when he described it as "an extended pool of stagnant
: water,” for it was, when I saw it, one of the prettiest streams to be found
in this country of fine rivers.8 The width is such as to give a full view of
; objects on both sides in passing; the basin was full without overflowing;
'and though the current was gentle, its waters were neither muddy nor
| stagnant. It should, however, be observed, that my journey was in the
| season when the rivers of the great Mississippi valley, though beginning to
subside, were still high, and that those who wish to see them to advantage
:j should visit the South and West before the heats of summer. Else will they
be assuredly disappointed, and accuse me of indulging in a favorite amuse-
ment of travelers.

The Illinois, until you approach the Rapids, seems made on purpose
Ifor steam navigation, which is seldom, if ever, molested either by winds or
waves. With the exception of points where the prairies approach the
i borders, the river is every where skirted by those magnificent forests which
t| constitute one of the most striking and beautiful features of this new world;

| and completely sheltered from the storm, seems to glide along unconscious
jjof the uproar of the elements around. It flows through a region which,
I even in this land of milk and honey, is renowned far and near for its almost
j unequaled fertility, and the ease with which it may be brought to produce
jthe rich rewards of labor. There is, perhaps, no part of the world where
[the husbandman labors less, and reaps more, than throughout a great por-
:ion of this fine state, on which nature has bestowed her most exuberant
oounties.

But, strange to say, I found the good-hearted people, almost without
exception, complaining of "hard times,” not arising, however, from the usual

7 The narative was published in Graham’s Magazine, Vol. 34 (Jan. 1849),
16-23. About two-thirds of it is reprinted here.

8 Major Stephen H. Long, regularly assigned to exploring expeditions by the
ederal authorities, mapped the region in 1816: Report to the Secretary of War,
March 4, 1817. He also prepared a report on the feasibility of a canal linking Lake
Michigan and the Illinois River (Dec. 28, 1819) for John C. Calhoun, secretary of
var.

296

A TOUR OF ILLINOIS IN 1842

sources of war, famine, or pestilence, but from actual abundance.9 They had
more than they knew what to do with, and it was an apt, though melancholy :
commentary on the wisdom of man, as well as the providence of human j
legislation, that while the citizens of Illinois, and, indeed, the entire great
western valley, were overburthened with all the necessaries of life, a great
portion of the laboring poor of England were starving for want of them,!
simply because their rulers had virtually prohibited one country from reliev-
ing the necessities of the other. But for the high duties on flour, grain and
provisions, the wants of the poor of England might and would be greatly re-
lieved by the superabundance of the United States, and thus the blessings of
Providence bestowed on one country be disseminated among others. But!
legislators, renowned for their far-reaching sagacity, have decreed otherwise;;
and the plenty which might become a universal blessing, is made a burthen;
to one country, while useless to all the rest of the world. . . .10

The Illinois has the same peculiarity I observed in all the rivers of the
Mississippi valley. With the exception of here and there a solitary planta-
tion, or a little embryo town,* 11 few traces of man appear on its borders until'
you arrive at the great prairie, above the head of steam navigation, which;
extends all the way to the lakes. At long distances we came upon one ofj
those evidences of the busy body, man, in the shape of a little village, a clear-
ing, or an establishment for putting up pork for exportation, where I was
told, notwithstanding the "hard times,” they throw the ears, feet, and oftenj
heads of the swine into the river, to feed the eels and catfish.12 Indeed, from;
what I observed throughout the whole extent of my journey, in this suffering
region, there is almost as much wasted there as would serve to feed the starv-l
ing manufacturers of England.

Most of the towns on the river, below the Rapids, have little worthy of
attention, and all their glories are prospective; but there is one it would be!
unpardonable to pass by without a tribute to its surpassing beauties. I refei
to Peoria, whose aspect is as soft and gentle as its name.13 Father Charleroix

9 In 1841 wheat was selling at 41 cents a bushel in Peoria and at $1.00 if
Chicago. The problem was to get it to Chicago. An Ottawa firm advertised for fifn
teams in 1842 to haul wheat to Chicago.

10 The deleted section is a description of Indians in general, and of the Illini it
particular, derived from P. F. X. Charlevoix, Journal of a Voyage to North Amerki
(London, 1761).

11 J. S. Buckingham, The Eastern and Western States of America (London, 1842)
III: 216, lists nine towns between Peoria and Peru in 1840: Detroit, Rome, Allen
town, Chillicothe, Lacon, Henry, Webster, Hennepin, and Enterprize.

12 Pork, according to the diary of John Davis, was selling at $1.50 to $2.25 :
hundred in 1843. This diary is printed in Papers in Illinois History and Tram
actions for the Year 1941 (Springfield, 1943), 38-72.

13 Davis, a canal appraiser, said that Peoria looked "more thriving than an
place between it and St. Louis.” Papers in Illinois History, 1941, p. 42.

■

MENTOR L. WILLIAMS

297

| [j 'ic],1* I think, calls it Pimitavery, and it lies on the left bank of the Illinois,
where it expands into a lake from one to three miles wide, and ten in
length. Ascending the bank, you come upon a fine prairie, forming a cres-
cent, of some twelve or fifteen miles, judging by the eye, whose arch is
bounded by a bluff, as it is here usually called, but which represents a
[natural terrace of wonderful regularity, clothed with luxuriant grass, and

[crowned with open woods, affording as beautiful sites for country residences
as can be imagined in dreams. It was Sunday, and in the afternoon, when
the sun was low, I took a walk from the town to the terrace, about a mile
j distant, which is reached by a private road, leading among wheat and corn
If fields of the greatest luxuriance.

[Nothing could be more soft, calm, and alluring than the weather and
the scene. The smooth glassy lake lay directly before me, bordered on the
'farther side by a vast green meadow receding far way, and fringed in the
vague distance by a dark barrier of forest, beyond which was nothing but
the skies. Between the lake and the terrace on which I stood, lay the
jthrifty, gay-looking town; to the left, the crescent gracefully curved till it
met the lake, while to the right it made a noble sweep, inclosing a level
'prairie, whose extent I did not pretend to determine; and which, though it
; had never been sowed or reaped, looked as smooth as a shaven lawn, as green
as the most luxuriant meadow. Neither fence nor inclosure of any kind was
seen in that quarter, and the cattle dispersed about in all directions, strayed
wherever they pleased. . . ,15

Some eight or ten miles above Peoria, just at the point where this charm-
ing lake again becomes metamorphosed into its parent river, and in the midst
of a solitude which requires only the presence and labors of man to make it
lone of the gayest as well as most fruitful districts in the world, are the ruins,
or rather remains of the modern city of Rome, founded, not built, in the
palmy days of speculation wild. These remains consist of the skeleton of a
single house, which puts the passing traveler in mind of the voice of one
crying in the wilderness of rich, waving prairie, blooming with flowers of
every hue and odor. If there is not a city here now, there certainly will be
in time; and the long-sighted speculator, whoever he was, only anticipated a
generation or two in the march of population. This beautiful region only
wants inhabitants, which, whatever people may say, are necessary to the
prosperity of cities; and I think it by no means improbable that some hun-
dreds, or perhaps thousands of years hence — which, after all, is nothing

14 Paulding consistently calls Charlevoix, Charleroix.

15 Paulding pauses here to speculate on whether the evidences of mechanical
skill in the West may not actually have been the work of intrepid eighteenth-century

white men.

298

A TOUR OF ILLINOIS IN 1842

compared to eternity — when all the past, present and future glories of the
ancient mistress of the world are buried in the bottomless pit of oblivion,
the founder of this legitimate successor, though not suckled by a wolf, may
take rank with Romulus and Remus, and be immortalized as the parent of
a new and more illustrious Rome.16

Sailing up the river, among the green meadows, and willows kissing
the surface of the waters, amid a silence broken only by the puffing of the
steam-pipe, the next object which attracted my attention was a pretty little
village pleasantly situated on the right bank, whose name commemorates the
residence of old Father Hennepin, who, tradition says, once established a
mission here. . . .17

I went on shore and visited the town, which stands on a high gravel
bank — a great rarity in this region — and endeavored to ascertain the spot
of the good father’s residence. But there are no aged persons, no depositories
of traditionary lore to be found here; and our people are too much taken up
with anticipations of the future, to pay much attention to the past. I found
no one could give any precise information, though all were familiar with his
name. Hennepin is the county-seat of Putnam; and as it does not, I believe,
aspire to the dignity of a great city, like most of its neighbors, will probably
flourish long and happily, a memorial of the good father whose name it
bears. . . .18

About the head of steam-navigation on the Illinois, and especially near
the junction of the canal19 which will connect the lakes with the Mississippi,
cities multiply prodigiously, and are called by the most prodigious names.
Most assuredly my countrymen are great at christening places; but still I wish
they would consult Tristram Shandy, where they will find a most edifying
discussion on the subject. The race of antiquaries who grope their way back-
ward through the obscure labyrinth of time by the clue of names, will as-
suredly be not a little puzzled, as children are wont to be, to find out who
was the father of Zebedee’s children. If they should follow the etymology of
names, they will probably come to the conclusion that we derived our parent-
age from all the nations of the earth, ancient and modern, and had more
fathers than children.

Nevertheless I have nothing to say against any of the thriving brood 1
of young cities that multiplied so wonderfully in those happy days when swal-
lows built in young men’s whiskers, and the little hatchet became a great s
hammer before the iron grew cold. Those especially that have either houses

16 Paulding, of course, is "stirring up a breeze”; there may be an interesting bit
of history behind the satire, however.

17 Here follows a summary of the work of Hennepin and La Salle.

18 An account, taken from Charlevoix, of the death of Marquette is omitted.

19 The Illinois and Michigan Canal.

MENTOR L. WILLIAMS

299

pr inhabitants, I wish all possible prosperity, and hope they will one day
'rival the great cities after which they are christened. But those which have
nothing but a name and a lithographic map to demonstrate their existence,
cannot expect to be recognized by any traveler of ordinary pretensions to
(veracity. The commencement of the canal to which allusion has just been
made, was the signal for speculation in its immediate vicinity, and six cities
were forthwith founded on the prairie between La Salle and Ottawa, a dis-
tance of some fourteen miles.20 As they may possibly perish in embryo be-
fore their birth, and thus dodge the antiquary who will be looking for them
;ome centuries hence, I feel it a duty to do all I can to assist his inquiries.
Jest he should lose his wits in searching for them, as did the pedagogue in
Le Sage, in looking for the paulo post futurum of a Greek verb.

The first of these, whose name I don’t choose to remember, is very ad-
vantageously situated on a barren rock, at the head of the navigation of a
ptream which can neither be spelt nor pronounced, and which had no water
n it when I passed over. But not to wrong the river, or the long-headed,
long-sighted founder of the city, I acknowledge I was informed that some-
dmes during the melting of the snows on the Rocky Mountains, or after a
peavy shower of rain, there was an ample sufficiency of water to float a chip
—not a ship, gentle reader — of considerable burthen, into the Illinois. It
Jvas therefore the opinion of the unknown and illustrious founder, that noth-
jng could prevent this place from becoming in good time a great com-
mercial emporium; and I was told, but will not vouch for the fact, that he
|tad actually organized a whaling company, and seriously talked of opening
direct trade with China. In short, he looked forward with all the faith of
j speculator, which exceeds that of a martyr ten times over, to seeing his
jity, in a few years, smothered by a corporation, blessed with half a dozen
(Token banks, and loaded with debts and taxes, in humble emulation of its
jitters.

In the books of English tenures, there are some whimsical conditions
f ownership and occupancy; but I recollect none similar to the city I am
ommemorating, which denounces a forfeiture of property on all those con-
icted of either drinking or bringing spirituous liquors therein. No one
dll question the morality of this regulation, though its prudence may not
e so obvious, as many people might suppose that any future purchasers of
>ts, some of which I was told had been originally sold for two or three hun-
red dollars each,21 would require some powerful stimulant in addition to the

20 Buckingham (Eastern and Western States, III: 222) passed on the way to
■ttawa a town called Rockwell, a community of six houses, and Utica with three
sellings.

21 Buckingham noted that land at Peru was selling for $800 per acre in 1840.
istern and Western States, III: 221.

300

A TOUR OF ILLINOIS IN 1842

excitement of speculation,
such a price at this time.

It is doubtful whether any sober man would givi
I hi

neither houses nor inhabitants.

I had almost forgot to mention that this city ha:

The next brevet city we passed, is just at the foot of the lower rapid;
of the Illinois, and directly on the margin of the river. It promises rather!
better than the other, having one house actually built, and another in an
ticipation. It is really a delightful spot, on a strip of prairie looking like t
an immense shaven lawn, backed by a high terrace of grassy knobs anci
precipitous rocks, whose sides and summits are clothed with foliage, alon^ii
which the gentle river meanders lazily until it comes to the rapids, which!
having passed, it pursues its way rejoicing. It might have destroyed th<||
balance of this portion of the new wTorld, had these two great marts beerji
placed on the same side of the river, and accordingly they are prudentbjl
located on the opposite shores, in order to preserve the equilibrium. I wa:|
told there was a desperate rivalry between them, and great apprehensions art ;
entertained from their competition when they come to be inhabited.

Just above this last-mentioned metropolis, and on the same side of thj
river, is the Starvation Rock. . . .22 It is one of the most beautiful rocks ::
ever saw, exhibiting a succession of ledges, displayed horizontally witlj
wonderful regularity, but of an infinite variety of shades and colors, such ajft
is generally observed in cliffs of limestone. At a little distance, beheld througlB
the soft hazy atmosphere of the prairie, it resembles the ruins of a greajj
castle, towering to the height of perhaps two hundred feet, garnished witl|J
trees, shrubs, flowers and clambering vines. The whole of this vast fruitfu i
region, from the delta of the Mississippi to the Niagara Ridge, terminatm,
at Lewistown, is, so far as I observed, based on a limestone formation, anA
the waters every where impregnated with lime. They are said to be whole
some when one is accustomed to their use; but, unfortunately, I never coulU
get used to them, and finally came to the conclusion, that — to vary the olj
proverb a little to suit the occasion — though Heaven had created the lane
the D — 1 had furnished the water.

■

The last city I shall commemorate is called after a famous stronghol d
in Europe,23 being seated on a ledge of rocks extending from the Illinoij
into the prairie, and apparently inaccessible on all sides. It is certainly
capital position in a military point of view, and would be invaluable on j
frontier. People might live there in great security if they could find an
thing to eat. At present the only enemy they would have to fear is famin

22 Paulding tells of Charlevoix’ visit to the Rock in 1720. He assumes that tli
reader is familiar with the incident from which the name derived.

23 This description fits Starved Rock which Buckingham, Eastern and Westei
States, III: 225, compared to Gibraltar.

MENTOR L. WILLIAMS

301

Luckily, however, there are no inhabitants, and one need be under no appre-
hensions on that score. It is a most picturesque spot, the mossy rocks every
where interspersed with flowers and verdure, and the summit crowned with
an open wood of lofty trees, under which the grass is as green and luxuriant
as a lowland meadow. There are several other cities, lying dormant, between
this and the town of Ottawa, and no one can predict their future destinies.24
When the canal connecting the Mississippi and the lakes comes to be finished,
as I hope it soon will be, for it is a great national undertaking, and will form
the last link to the most extensive inland navigation in the world, there can be
little doubt, I think, that this will become a very busy and populous region.
Towns will rise up as a matter of course; and, provided they do not ruin each
other by their numbers and their rivalry, will flourish to a considerable extent.
Those, therefore, who have the wealth of Croesus, and the patience of Job,
may, if they please, speculate in town-lots in these embryo cities, for the
benefit of their posterity. . . ,25

The little town of La Salle lies close to the junction of the canal witli
the Illinois, and was founded by a colony of the sons of old Erin, who were
employed in that undertaking. It is a genuine, unadulterated Irish town;
the cabins many of them of turf, and all thatched with straw. The nm lber
of pigs is only to be matched by that of children, and both are in a most
flourishing condition, to judge from the portly dimensions of one and the
rosy cheeks of the other. There is no place in the universe where the jolly,
hard-working, warm-hearted Irishman can so gloriously luxuriate in the
paradise of potatoes.20

The reader will please to understand that notwithstanding the number
of great cities hereabouts, the entire prairie from Peru to Chicago, with here
and there an occasional exception, is in a state of nature, although one of
the fairest and richest portions of the earth. They began at the wrong end,
or rather, they put the cart before the horse, and laid out towns instead of
cultivating land. This is one of the prominent foibles of that sanguine,
enterprising, anticipating and gallant race which is daily adventuring into
the boundless region of the West. They are not content with land of in-
i exhaustible fertility, but almost every tenth man aspires to be the founder of
a city. Instead, therefore, of laying out his farm into fields, he lays it out
into a town, which he calls after his own name, with a ville at the end of
it; or he dams up the river, builds a mill, and lays the foundation of a
series of bilious complaints, that descend to his posterity to the second or

24 Paulding’s satire on the paper cities was richly deserved.

25 A brief comment on La Salle’s pioneer labors is omitted.

26 Buckingham, however, declared that the living quarters of the Irish here were
"repulsive.” Eastern and Western States, 111:223.

302

A TOUR OF ILLINOIS IN 1842

third generation. Hence the number of towns is out of all proportion tel
the number of inhabitants. With very many of them, their generation is
mere spasmodic effort of speculation. They consequently exhibit an appear!
ance of prosperity for a few years; are then suddenly arrested, and eithe
never grow any more, or dwindle away to nothing. A despotic monarch lik<
Peter the Great may create a city where he will, but with all his power h<|
cannot perpetuate its existence beyond his own, unless it possesses natura
advantages to attract voluntary settlers. Private persons should beware hov:
they undertake to found cities. They may build houses, but they cannot
fill them with people.

The town of La Salle, unlike some of its neighbors, was conceived and
brought forth in the natural way, that is, the people preceded the houses!
When the honest Irish laborers came to work on the canal, they accordin.f
to custom built themselves cabins, about the spot where they commence|l
their labors. As the land was neither cultivated nor enclosed, they employed
their leisure hours in digging ditches about a piece of prairie large enouglj;
for a potato-patch, and sometimes a small patch of wheat or corn. Here
with little labor, they raised as much as supplied them with bread, or a sub,
stitute; and though the canal has for some years been discontinued for lacf
of means, these people continue to cultivate their little fields, which arj
wonderfully productive, frequently making new enclosures, and sometime)
erecting frame houses. If the land belonged to the United States they wer[
protected by the right of preemption, and if to a private citizen, it was hij '
interest to let them alone, as Y nere was no danger of the soil being exhausted
and he was thus saved the labor of the first ploughing, which is the mos!
expensive of all the process of cultivation here. Thus these honest, laborioii
people live quite comfortably, waiting the period of recommencing the canaj
and some of them perhaps able to purchase the land on which they reside!
provided it is not laid out in cities, which is very probable, for you ca
hardly put down your foot without crushing one of these mushrooms.

Ottawa, like La Salle, is a real bona fide town, with houses and inhat
itants.27 Its age is some twelve or fifteen years, and the number of its peopl
from twelve to fifteen hundred. I found the situation so peculiarly agree
able, and the hotel so comfortable,28 that I determined to remain awhil)
and amuse myself with making little excursions about the neighborhood

27 Here Buckingham meets the Scotch superintendent of the canal laborers wq
tells of measures tried to make them temperate but laments their failure. Eastern arlk
Western States, 111:228-29-

28 Compare with Buckingham, Eastern and Western States, 111:233, who four
there a "dirty and ill-furnished table ... we could not perceive the contents of arj M
single dish on it, from the myriads of flies . . . sufficient to destroy all appetite eve,
had there been anything on the table that would tempt it.” Note that both travele; i
were there in June.

MENTOR L. WILLIAMS

303

than which nothing can be more beautiful. The town stands at the junction
of the Fox River with the Illinois. They are both clear, limpid streams,
and though coming from far distant lands, meet and mingle together as
quietly as if they had been friends from their birth.

The scenery is as gentle as the rivers, and as mild and mellow as one of
Claude’s29 pictures, that actually makes a real connoisseur yawn and stretch
to look at it. In one direction the eye passes over a long narrow prairie, all
one rich expanse of grass and flowers, through which the Illinois sometimes
hurries rapidly over a ledge of rocks, at others meanders lazily along. On
either side of the river, the prairie is bounded by those remarkable terraces
which form one of the more beautiful features of this region. They rise
abmptly from the green level sward, to the height, I should imagine, of one
hundred and fifty feet, in some places presenting a smooth grassy bank,
; whose ascent is dotted and their summits crowned with trees; in others, walls
of perpendicular rocks disposed in regular strata, of varied tints, diversified
with all sorts of verdure peeping from out the crevices. There terraces seem
created on purpose for houses, from the porches or windows of which the
proprietors of the rich fields and meadows beneath, might overlook their
beautiful possessions, and thank a bounteous Providence for having cast their
lot, not in Araby, but Illinois the blest.

Looking toward the north, from my window at the hotel, the great roll-
ing prairie, extending from Ottawa to Chicago, presented itself in a succes-
sion of gentle risings and waving lines, all green, yet of such various shades,
that there was nothing like sameness or dull insipidity. The Fox River
approaches in this direction, and may be seen stealing its way with many
windings of coy reluctance, toward that union with the Illinois where it is
to lose its name and identity forever. Indeed, in all directions the views are
almost unequaled for softness and delicacy, and I hope I may be pardoned
.for this vain attempt to communicate to my readers a portion of the pleasure
1 derived from their contemplation. Travelers have a right to such in-
dulgence, since nothing can be more disinterested than for a man to undergo
,:he fatigue of visiting distant places, merely for the gratification of making
others as wise as himself.

Ottawa is a fine place for sportsmen, most especially those disciples of
fob and St. Anthony who deal with the fishes. The traditionary fishing in
he Illinois and Fox Rivers is capital, and there is scarcely a man to be met
with, who has not at least once in his life been eminently successful. But
t is certainly somewhat peculiar to the gentle science of angling, that the
>est fishing is always the greatest way off. It is never where you happen

29 Claude Lorrain, clebrated French landscape painter, 1600-1682?

304

A TOUR OF ILLINOIS IN 1842

to be, but always somewhere else. It is never in the present tense, but alwal
in the past or the future. However excellent it be on the spot, it is alwaj
better somewhere else: and the farther you go, the farther off, to the end (
the chapter. Then, ten to one, it is too late, or too early; the sun shines t(«?
bright; the wind blows too hard, or does not blow at all. In short, there !■
ever some untoward circumstance in the way of success, and I know is
school of patience and philosophy superior to the noble apprenticeship (
angling.

The fishing is however good, both in the Fox River and the Illino
There i$ a large species called trout, rather from its habits than appearanc
which frequents the rapids, and is a noble subject for the angler; while t|
vulgar fisherman, who affects the still water, may now and then luxuriate !i
a cat-fish weighing ten or fifteen pounds, and ugly enough to frighten a merjj
ber of a militia court-martial. There is also the gar-fish, of great size, who|
pleasure it is to let you toss him up into the air, without ever catching hiij
and then see him plump down into the water with the bait, perhaps hoc)
and all, in his jaws. On the whole, however, the sport is extremely agrej
able, and the little excursions to the various points renowned for anglip
present such a succession of charming scenes, that no one can complain j
toiled all day long and caught no fish, who has preserved the happy facuj
of enjoying the smiling earth and balmy air.

Add to this, the prairies abound in a species of grouse, affording eqi:
sport to the fowler and the epicure. I am no shot, but my excellent ho(
who well deserves a passing notice, and who does credit to the Empire staj
of which he is a native, was both a capital shot and a first rate angler. I|
deed he could do almost any thing, and merited the title of an univer|n
genius as much as any man I have met with. He would every morning iji
out his little wagon, drawn by a rough uncivilized Indian pony, which, lil
old Virginia, "never tires,” and followed by a couple of dogs, sally out l
the prairie, whence he never returned without a supply of game. The suil
mer climate is here by no means oppressive; the storms never last a whJ
day; and, in short, I know few places where a man fond of rural scenes, ruj ;
sports, and quiet enjoyments, might spend his time more pleasantly thanj:
the comfortable quarters of mine host at Ottawa, whose name is Delailf
and whose house is on the margin of Fox River.30 "May he live a thousaj.
years, and his shadow never be less.”

30 John Davis, Papers in Illinois History, 1941, p. 44, "found at Ottoway i
good comfortable house [cf. Buckingham above] kept by Delano, who is a hunj’
and supplies his table with venison. Here I found good fires and had for the fip
time since I left Baltimore a good nights rest.” Delano is obviously a figure ww
deserves investigation.

MENTOR L. WILLIAMS

305

Leaving Ottawa, I embarked on the sea of the prairie, and after pro-
ceeding a few miles came to a settlement of Norwegians,31 consisting of a
little straggling village, encompassed by luxuriant fields of wheat and corn,
showing forth the rich rewards of industry operating in a fertile soil. The
Puddings and other appendages indicated not only comfort but competency,
and I could not avoid being struck with the singularity of a community from
:he remote regions of Northern Europe planting itself in this secluded spot
in the very bosom of the New World.

Yet this is by no means a solitary example. Go where we will in the
great region of the West, we perceive new evidence of the proud and happy
! destiny of our country, in being above all others on the face of the earth, the
and toward which the eager and longing eye of hope is cast from every
corner of Christendom: the land to which poverty turns for relief from its
! sufferings, and the oppressed for the enjoyment of the rights bestowed by
God and filched away by man; the land which alone yields an adequate re-
ward to labor, and gives to honest enterprise its fair field for exertion; the
and where pining wretchedness never descends as an heir-loom from gen-
eration to generation, and want is not, like wealth, hereditary; the New
tf^orld, which a gracious Providence seems to have reserved as a refuge and
h home to the swarms of industrious bees driven from the parent hive for
vant of room, want of employment, and want of bread. . . ,32

I have lately seen in some of the English papers exaggerated pictures
)f the condition of the United States, founded, probably, in the policy of
encouraging emigration to her own possessions, or derived from the reports
)f some few disappointed emigrants who have returned home. It was pro-
claimed that the country was crushed with debts it never could repay with-
out impoverishing the people by taxation; that labor could neither find em-
ployment nor receive adequate reward; that an universal blight had come
over the land, and every where withered its prosperity; that the states were
bankrupt and the people beggers.33 All this is sheer declamation. There
o lever has been any thing like widely extended, much less general distress
[»■ —

31 Norwegians began settling in La Salle County as early as 1834, partly be-
ause of the prospects raised by the canal. See T. C. Blegen, ed., Peter Testman’s

Account of Experiences in America (Northfield, Minn. 1927). Testman (p. 55)
isited in 1839 a little "Norwegian colony twelve English miles north of the outlet
>f the Fox River into the Illinois River.” See also Carleton C. Qualey, "The Fox
liver Norwegian Settlement,” Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society, Vol.
(vXVII, no. 2 (July, 1934), 133 ff. Note, too, the standard works of R. B. Anderson,
L C. Babcock, T. C. Blegen, W. V. Pooley, and A. E. Strand on immigration to Illinois.
•Jorway, Stavanger, and Lisbon were settled by Norwegians.

32 Further rhapsodies on America as a place of refuge are here omitted.

33 The stereotyped British arguments against emigration. Paulding was an arch
ationalist whose works satirizing Great Britain were widely read. He never missed
, n opportunity to make odious comparisons.

30 6

A TOUR OF ILLINOIS IN 1842

in the United States, arising from a deprivation or curtailment of the necesjl
saries or comforts of life. There never was a time when any class, or anjl
considerable proportion of a class, approached within a thousand degrees) I
that poverty and destitution which is the common lot of so large a portion :
of the laboring people of the Old World. The country has at all times been
blessed with a plenty, a superfluity, an exuberance of every product essentia
to human existence, and those who could not obtain them, were either un

willing to make the necessary exertions, or unable to do so by sickness o
some other untoward circumstance. The distress complained of is not posiii!

tive, but comparative. We may be restricted in our luxuries, but the landJJ
from one wide extreme to the other, is absolutely flowing with milk anc[ |
honey, and it is little less than flying in the face of the bounties of Heaven1:
to complain of hard times, which can only be traced to a superabundant i
of every thing, and shrink to the earth under the pressure of a debt, th|
whole of which could be paid in less time than it was contracted, without
incurring one-fourth of the burden sustained by the people of England. Buf
we have been spoiled by prosperity. Fortuna nisirium quem foret stulturk I
facit ,34 Fifty years of almost uninterrupted prosperity had turned our heads; ;
and it is to be hoped a few years of wholesome reaction will restore us t<
reason. . . .

The prairies have already been described as well perhaps as they eve'f
will be, because they are a sort of lusus naturae, and there is nothing witl
which to compare them. To tell of what ingredients they are composed i.
easy enough, but to give a just idea of the effects of their combination, re
quires analogies not to be found in the other productions of nature, nor id

the imagery of the mind. Although substantial realities, they present nothj

ing but deceptions, and I believe it is beyond the power of language, almost
imagination, to exaggerate the strange and beautiful combination of what i<{
and what is not, sporting together in perfect harmony on these boundlesl
plains. The eye becomes at length wearied with being thus perpetually thl
dupe of imaginary forms, and imaginary distances, while the mind involunj
tary revolts at the deceptions practiced on the senses. Mr. Bryant :
poetry,35 and Mr. Hoffman36 and Mr. Catlin37 in prose, have done all th
can be done to convey to those who have never seen them an impressior
of the effect of these happy eccentricities of nature, and the beautifu

34 Fortuna nimium quem fovet, stultum facit. Fortune makes a fool of the man
whom she favors too much.

35 William Cullen Bryant, "The Prairies,” "The Hunter of the Prairies.”

36 Charles Fenno Hoffman, A Winter in the West (New York, 1835).

37 George Catlin, Letters and Notes on the Manners, Customs, and Condition' in
of the North American Indians (London, 1841), 2 v.

MENTOR L. WILLIAMS

307

phantasmagoria they exhibit forth to the senses and the imagination.38

If ever miser were pardoned for coveting his neighbors land, it might
be such land as the prairies of Illinois, where man labors almost without the
sweat of his brow, and the crops are so abundant that all I heard the good
people complain of was having more than they knew what to do with. This
is indeed a lamentable state of things, and it were I think much to be wished
that some of our philosophical lectures would discuss the relative advantages
. of having too much and too little of a good thing. The case of an individual
being overburthened with superfluity, is easily disposed of, as he has only
to turn it over to his neighbors who may be in want; but when entire com-
munities, states and confederations of states, labor under this inconvenience,
where nobody wants, and all have plenty to bestow; in other words, where
all wish to sell and nobody cares to buy, it must be confessed there occurs
la crisis of such deplorable difficulty, that I can conceive no effectual remedy
except two or three years of famine like those which succeeded the seven
years of plenty in Egypt. This would consume the mischievous surplus, and
rid them of an evil which as it never before occurred, has never been pro-
vided against by the wisdom of legislation, which most people believe can
perform impossibilities.

But be this as it may, I passed over a vast region where the table of
every man groaned under superfluities, and every brood of swine wasted
more corn than would supply bread to a family of English manufacturers.
Yet I found all, without exception, in the last stage of hopeless despondency,
[until one day I entered the log-cabin of an old Negro woman, a slave, who
was enjoying her pipe at ease, and upon asking the usual commonplace ques-

38 Paulding, Life of James K. Paulding, 295. Paulding’s son also printed the
following paragraphs in the Life, which were obviously in the original manuscript
[.from which this article was taken:

[The Prairie has a character, a physiognomy, and an atmosphere of its own.
| flust around you it is all reality; at a distance it is all doubt, delusion, mystification.
^Distances are magnified, or diminished; what seems close by, is often a great way off;
md what shows dimly afar, is almost within reach of the hand. What, in passing
over, seems a perfect plain, exhibits in perspective a succession of light waving hills
rising one above another pencilled in the skies. It is always level under your feet and
rez you see a perpetual succession of little eminences, behind, before, and all around.
Kt one time you behold a solitary house looming upon a rise, which, when you ap-
pioach it is a flat expanse, apparently without beginning or end; at another a distant
i wood, whose straight line of deep foliage darkens the sky in which it seems to stand
; ;elf -supported: — at all events, beneath is vacancy.

Occasionally, you see something sailing across this ocean of land, distinguishable

Bdmost as far off as a ship at sea. This is a wagon, freighted with the goods and
rhattels of a pilgrim journeying to the land of promise, and manned by a troop of
usty children. At first you can see nothing but the peaked ends of the wagon-top,
covered with linen or canvas, shaped like gaff-topsails, and one cannot resist the im-
pression always conjured up by the strange resemblance which an open prairie-scene
oears to an ocean on which now and then a vessel heaves in sight. Hence these
wagons are aptly called Prairie Schooners.]

308

A TOUR OF ILLINOIS IN 1842

tion of "how times went with her,” was answered with the most cheerfu
alacrity — ” O bravely, massa. Hens ’gin to lay finely.” We hear of nation?
suffering from famine, but my unfortunate countrymen complain of nothin^!
but plenty. Whence comes this strange paradox? Is it because men have*
sought to invent artificial means of prosperity which act in direct oppositior I
to the great general laws of Providence, and are thus punished for their prejr
sumptuous folly by a new, unheard of infliction?

After riding a distance of some seventy or eighty miles on the prairie i
over the best natural roads in the world, I halted at the house of a Dutcl
farmer from the banks of the Hudson, where I heard that old patriarcha
language spoken for the first time in many years. There are several de
scendants of the ancient Hollanders settled in this quarter,39 to which the)||
are tempted by the broad rich flats, and the easiness of their cultivation,
have observed that those who partake largely in this blood, though almos ii
uniformly steady and industrious in their habits, don’t much like hard, fa!
tiguing work. They prefer labor where there is no violent exertion or strain t
ing, no heavy burthens to lift or carry, and no call for extraordinary effort! ;
to achieve what may be accomplished in the ordinary way without themjm
Hence they are great amateurs in good land, easy to cultivate and yielding I
liberal returns. In this I think they are perfectly right. Without doubt, ijl
is the destiny of civilized man to labor, that is in moderation. But to labo:|;
without the rewards of labor; to be for ever toiling, and panting, and sweatjt
ing over a piece of rough, stony land, on which the malediction of eternaB
barrenness has been denounced ever since the creation of the world; to b<;
ever sowing wheat and reaping nothing but tares, is in my opinion, utterlf
unphilosophical, and unworthy of all men who can go farther and fart
better.

A particular occasion had drawn together at this spot a large cavalcad<||
of both sexes, gayly caparisoned and well-mounted, many of the females be!
ing equipped in riding-habits, hats with feathers, and all more or less picj \
turesque in their appearance. They chose to accompany the carriage to ;jj|i
little town about six or seven miles distant, over a beautiful expanse o .
prairie, or as it might be aptly termed, "faerie land,” exhibiting a successioij |
of grassy lawns and beds of flowers of hundreds of acres, marshaled unde] I
different colors, some were red, some blue, and others entirely yellow. It i
difficult to imagine a more gay and beautiful spectacle than that presentee:
on this occasion. The sky was sufficiently obscured to temper the glare oil
sunshine, which is sometimes here painful to the eye, and the playful caval ;

39 Before the "Anti-Rent” controversy reached its climax in the valley of th<
Hudson, a good many Dutch from the Van Rensselaer tract moved to the West'
There were Dutch colonies in Fulton and Peoria counties before 1840 also.

MENTOR L. WILLIAMS

309

cade, consisting of perhaps an hundred, indulged in a thousand careless,
i graceful evolutions on the level greensward, that seemed without beginning
or end, and offered no obstruction in any direction. Sometimes a pair of
riders of both sexes would dash out from the throng, and scamper away
until they appeared like shadows against the distant horizon; and at others,
the whole mass would separate in different directions, skimming over the
plain like Arabs on their winged steeds, their different colored dresses and
picturesque costumes rendering the scene indescribably gay and animating.
The females all without exception sat and managed their horses with that
perfect skill and grace arising from constant habit, and upon the whole, I
never witnessed any exhibition that could compare with this ride on the
prairie of Illinois in romantic interest and novelty.

Thus, toward evening, I reached the pleasant town which was to be
my resting-place for the night. By some strange perversion of ignorance,
or freak of vanity, it is nicknamed Juliet, instead of Joliet ,40 from the old
pioneer of that name, who established his quarters here in olden time on a
: mount, which, fortunately, has escaped being travestied into Juliet, and still
‘preserves his name. This mount is one of the most remarkable, as well as
beautiful objects in nature. It rises directly from the prairie to the height, I
. should judge, of more than an hundred feet; is clothed with a rich velvet
coat of grass on all sides, as well as at the summit; is entirely distinct from
any other eminence; comprises an area of six or eight acres, and is as regular
and perfect in construction, form, and outline, as any work of art I ever
saw. It has been generally taken by travelers for a creation of those mysteri-
ous mound-builders,41 whose name and history have passed into oblivion,
and who have left no memorials of their existence but such as render it
only more inexplicable. It is, however, as I ascertained, a production of the
cunning hand of Nature, who sometimes, it would seem, amuses herself by
Showing how much she can excel her illegitimate sister, Art, even in her
most successful attempts at imitation.

The canal connecting the Illinois with the lakes, runs directly at the
I mot of this mount, which with something like Gothic barbarity has been
deeply excavated on one side, in order to form the outward bank. This
process has disclosed a succession of different strata of earth, clay, and gravel,
ill regularly defined, and evidently not the work of man, but of the world

, 40 Buckingham makes the same observation, Eastern and Western States, 111:249.

f, as has been said, Van Buren suggested changing the name of Juliet to Joliet,
jpaulding probably put the idea into his head.

41 See Buckingham, Eastern and Western States, 111:245, "No possible doubt can
*xist of its being wholly artificial.” He estimated that the tumulus builders had to
nove 18,000,000 cubic feet of earth to erect it. Ibid., 245. See also Robert Knight
.nd Lucius Zeuch, "Mt. Joliet: Its Place in Illinois History,” Journal of the Illinois
'tate Historial Society, Vol. XXIII, no. 1 (April, 1930), 84-91.

310

A TOUR OF ILLINOIS IN 1842

of craters, which beyond doubt covered all the surrounding country, long
posterior to the subsiding of the great deluge. . . .42

Some fifteen years ago the place occupied by the town of Joliet was
the seat of Black Hawk’s power. It now contains twelve or fifteen hundred J
white people, and is a busy, growing place, with reasonable anticipations of
becoming considerably larger in good time. The frank, hospitable, spirited
and intelligent people of this noble region of the West, must not, however
calculate too confidently on all their towns becoming great cities because
they grow with astonishing rapidity at the first starting. Great cities, like
great men, do not spring up in all places and every where. A large portion
of these towns, like children, will probably increase in size the first fe
years, more than in all their lives afterward. Many will stop short in thei
growth, and many will gradually be swallowed up by some neighboring!
rival, whose natural advantages, or some furtunate concurrence of circum
stances, will enable it to secure the ascendancy, and render all the othersl
tributary to its prosperity. When this ascendancy is permanently acquired!
nothing but inferior towns can flourish in its immediate vicinity, and likell
all great bodies, they will become the centre of attraction.

The canal connecting the Mississippi with the Lakes runs through thql
town, and is here finished in a most admirable and substantial manner. It
is identified with the River Des Planes [sic], which has been circumscribe^
by a wall to prevent its overflowing. There are here two locks, and a basin) 1
equal to any I have ever seen, and indeed, all the permanent stonework ofl
this canal appears to have been done in the most substantial and perfect*
style. A canal completing a line of inland water communication to thq
extent of from three to four thousand miles, by a cut of scarcely more th;
a hundred, through a region which is almost an apparent level, and present:
perhaps fewer natural obstructions than any other of the same extent to be9
found elsewhere, is not only a noble, but a feasible undertaking. Its ad-f
vantages are too obvious to require enumeration; it is in fact, essentially a|
national work,43 and stands a monument of rational foresight, among
thousand visionary schemes of sanguine folly, or selfish fraud. It is alreadyl]
more than two-thirds completed, and I conceive that New York is almost
as deeply interested in the final issue as Illinois.44

Leaving this fair and flourishing town, which still affords me manyj
agreeable recollections of natural beauty and kind hospitality, I visited in my

42 A brief historical note on Joliet has been omitted here.

43 An unusual position for a "party Democrat,” though common among westerr
Democrats, for example, John Wentworth of Chicago.

44 If possible, Massachusetts was even more deeply interested. Webster was i
stockholder. In 1843 Abbott Lawrence and other Boston capitalists appointee
"Honest John” Davis, ex-governor of Massachusetts, and Captain William Swift tc
make inquiries about the status of the canal for the English firm, Baring Brothers.

MENTOR L. WILLIAMS

311

[way to Chicago, the village of Lockport, which has grown up in anticipation
■ }f the completion of the canal. The descent of the River Des Planes is
rere sufficient to afford ample water-power for mills and manufactories, and
: his, in a country so level that the water half the time does not know which
way to run, is quite enough to excite the sanguine adventurers to this
j: promised land to a degree of delirium, and set them "kalkilating,” as Sam
Slick has it, a hundred degrees beyond the ratio of geometrical progression.
There is little reason to doubt that Lockport will become a considerable
manufacturing town in process of time, after the canal is finished45; but the
ar-sighted seekers into futurity would perhaps do well to bear in mind,
f:hat there must be people before there are cities; that these latter are the
hildren, not the parents of the country, and that it is not good policy to wait
[;o long for the grass to grow that two or three generations of steeds starve
fn the meantime. It is well to look a little to the present as well as the
f uture, and not be forever gazing at the shadowy mountain in the distance,
feast we fall into the ditch directly under our noses.

A few hours ride in a delightful morning, partly over rich cultivated
prairie lands, brought me to Chicago, at the southern extremity of Lake
Michigan. It is a fine town, and notwithstanding the blight of speculation
fvhich has swept the land from Dan to Beersheba, continues steadily on the
Increase. This is the best possible proof of inmate constitutional vigor, and
| iff or ds sufficient augury of its future growth and prosperity. To all these
f anguine young cities and citizens, might I assume the universal privilege
>f giving advice, I would recommend the maxim of the wise Emperor Augus-
tus, though I confess it is somewhat anti-republican to cite such an au-
\ hority — festina lente, hasten slowly — be not in too great a hurry to grow
big and to get rich, and do not crow before daylight, like ambitious young
foosters, who aspire to be beforehand with the sun.

After remaining three or four days at Chicago, and making several agree-
ble acquaintances, among which was an enterprising old gentleman of four
I core, who had come there, as he said, "to seek his fortune,” I bade farewell
|o the State of Illinois, bearing on my mind the impression that there was
B'-Ot in any country of the known world, a region of the same extent com-
j Ining within itself a greater portion of the elements of substantial and en-
suring prosperity. At the same time, I could not help lamenting that blessed
i s it is in its soil, its climate, its geographical position, and its industrious
Population, it had been precipitated from the summit of hope to the lowest
byss of debt and depression, by turning its back on the advantages which
jature had gratuitously bestowed, to snatch at others that Providence had

? 40 Buckingham, in 1840, found Lockport to be a town of two hundred houses

fnd a filthy bar.

312

A TOUR OF ILLINOIS IN 1842

withheld. Though the immediate source of these pressing difficulties of the
state, is without doubt improvident legislation, yet let not the good people
of Illinois lay all the blame on their law-makers and rulers. They were
chosen by their own free voices, and in many cases, for the express purpose
of carrying out those very projects which in their vast accumulation have
created these embarrassments. It was the feverish anxiety, the headlong
haste, the insatiable passion for growing rich in a hurry, independently ol
the exertions of labor and the savings of economy, that brought them and
other states where they are now standing shivering on the verge of bank

ruptcy.

In the United States the people are the sovereign, and all power either
for good or evil emanates from them. If they allow their own passions, oil
the seductions of others, to lead them astray, it is but a weak evasion to casi
the blame on those who were only enabled to perpetrate the offense by th
power which they themselvs delegated. Let them then set about retrievin
the consequences of their adherence to mischievous maxims and habits, b
returning to those which if firmly adopted and steadily pursued, will b
speedily followed by returning prosperity.47 Let the contest be, not who if
to blame for the evil, but who shall be foremost in proposing an effectua
remedy and contributing all in his power to bring it about. In short, lei
them only save as much in the next, as they wasted in the last twenty years
instead of restorting for relief to the very measure which produced the disease
and place their affairs in the hands of clear-sighted honest men, instead of d
great financiers, whose only expedient for paying one debt is contracting!
another, and my life on it, they will redeem themselves in less time than i|il
took to enthral them. But we who live in glass houses should never thro
stones. Illinois has enough of the sisterhood to keep her in countenance.

46 Repudiation was very much in the air. John Davis, whose diary we havf
mentioned, was worried by the attitude he observed among the settlers along the canaf

47 It is clear from such admonitions that this article was written much nearc
the date of the tour (1842) than the date of publication (1849).

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Speakers at the Golden Anniversary in Springfield

111 I

SPRINGFIELD

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NOTES ON OLD CAHOKIA

BY CHARLES E. PETERSON

Part Three: American Domination (1778-1790)

HE Illinois French had never learned to become English,

and now they had to become Americans. It was a long
time before the adjustment was made. George Rogers Clark’s
frontiersmen had left a bad impression; they were never quite
forgotten nor forgiven.

Virginia, ambitious as her neighbors, had never hestitated
to claim the Illinois country as a western extension of her
territory, but this was for a long time only theoretical. Con-
tact between the Atlantic seaboard and the French villages on
the Mississippi had been slow to develop. The English tended
to stay close to their towns while the rival French moved free-
ly up and down the Great Lakes and the Mississippi to the
Gulf. Although exploration of the West had been discussed
at Jamestown for years it was not until late in the seventeenth
century that Virginians reached the eastern fringe of the
great valley on waters that flowed into the Ohio River.1 Some

1 This was the Botts and Fallam party that left the falls of the Appomattox in
1671. For a general discussion, see Clarence Walworth Alvord and Lee Bidgood,
The First Explorations of the Trans -Allegheny Region by the Virginians, 1650-1674
(Cleveland, 1912).

Charles E. Peterson has become so interested in his subject that
he has expanded his original article on Old Cahokia to about twice
the length it was when The French American Review first published
it last year. And the largest part of this new material is contained
in the current installment. Peterson is architect for the National
Park Service with headquarters at W ashington, D. C.

313

314

NOTES ON OLD CAHOKIA

three decades were to pass before anyone made the complete
overland passage between the Mississippi and the Atlantic;
That was finally accomplished by a Frenchman, Jean Couture,
who came from the west by way of the Tennessee River and
afterwards led a party of Carolina fur traders back over the
same route. This was about the time of the founding of the
Cahokia mission.2

By 1720 Virginia was well aware of the western menace
A legislative act of that year set up two new frontier counties
and made reference to "danger from the Indians, and the late
settlements of the French to the westward of the said moun
tains.”3 Some of the milestones in westward expansion were
the reaching of the Mississippi by John Howard’s party of
Virginians in 17424 5; the formation of the old Ohio Lane
Company by a group of prominent citizens in 1747; the rush!
of traders, many from Virginia, to the Illinois country in 1765:;
and Lord Dunmore’s War of 1774, which subdued the Indians
temporarily and opened much of Kentucky to settlement. '
From the first, there had been bitter rivalry with the French;
and as the contest developed neither side had hesitated to send
war parties of Indians to wreak vengeance on the frontier
outposts of the other. This came to a climax in the French and!
Indian War.

Virginia’s occupation of the Illinois country by Clark in
the summer of 1778 created an immediate need for a civil;

2 Jean Couture had been one of La Salle’s men. Verner W. Crane, "The Ten, i
nessee River as the Road to Carolina: The Beginnings of Exploration and Trade, ’j ■
Mississippi Valley Historical Review, Vol. Ill, no. 1 (June, 1916), 3-18.

3 William Waller Hening, Statutes at Large, IV (Richmond, 1820), 77.

4 These first Virginians to reach the Mississippi overland were captured on the I
lower river by a party of French and taken to New Orleans as prisoners. John Petei I
Salley, one of them, heard of the Illinois country with its lead mines and salt springs jj
Somewhat inaccurately he wrote: "In the River Mississippi above the mouth of Allej I
gany is a large Island on which are three Towns inhabited by the French, who main! >ji
tain Commerce and Trade with the French of Cannada, and those French on the !
mouth of the said River.” Fairfax Harrison, "The Virginians on the Ohio and the l
Mississippi in 1742,” Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, Vol. XXX, no. 2 I
(April, 1922), 215-16.

5 Three incidents are discussed in C. W. Alvord, "Virginia and the West; ar
Interpretation,” Mississippi Valley Historical Review, Vol. Ill, no. 1 (June, 1916) .I
21-27.

CHARLES E. PETERSON

315

government. The legislature at Williamsburg passed a law in
October setting aside the land northwest of the Ohio as "Illi-
nois County.” This was to be governed by a county lieutenant
or commandant,6 and on December 12, young Colonel John
Todd of Kentucky (a friend of Clark’s and a burgess at Wil-
liamsburg) was appointed to that position with instructions
"to cultivate and conciliate the affections of the French and
Indians.”7 On May 12, 1779, his government was proclaimed
at Kaskaskia with some fine speeches. The new county was
laid off into four districts — each with a court, like those of
the Virginia counties, administering its affairs. Cahokia was
•the seat of one of these districts and had a court of seven
judges. It was the first to be organized.8

But internal strife had already begun. The Virginians
declared that they had liberated the French, who should be
grateful,9 but the French, as we have seen, came to feel that
they had been deceived. The paper money, brought out in
quantity by Clark’s forces and at first taken at face value, was
going from bad to worse. The civil and military departments
soon were quarreling with each other. As inflation set in,
times got hard; supplies were cut off from Canada, and an
embargo was placed on exports. In despair of success, Colonel
Todd gave up his civil government after about six months and
returned to Kentucky. By the end of 1782 conditions were very
grave indeed. It was reported that:

[The people] are wholly without Law or Government: that their Magis-
trates, from Indolence or sinister views, having for some time been relax in the

6Hening, Statutes at Large, IX (Richmond, 1821), 552-53.

|| 7 Calendar of Virginia State Papers, Vol. I (Richmond, 1875), 312. For a

sketch of Todd’s background, see Clarence W. Alvord, ed., Cahokia Records, 1778-
| 2790 (Illinois Historical Collections, II, Springfield, 1907), liii-liv. George Rogers
Clark Papers (MSS in the Virginia State Library, Richmond).

8 The judges were: "Touranjeau (Godin), Francois Trottier, Chas. Gratiot,
3-irradin B. Saucier, Mr. Beaulieu, P. Marthin,” with Francois Saucier, clerk, and
J. B. Le Croix, Sheriff. Edward G. Mason, ed., "John Todd’s Record-Book,” Chicago
Historical Society’s Collections, Vol. IV (Chicago, 1890), 295-

9 At first things had gone well: "The people seem pleased with their Exemption
rom Military Law & being Judged by persons chosen by themselves in their pro-
:eedings. They seem in many Instances to prefer the formal Customs of the State
o their old Usages.” John Todd[?} to your Excellency, July 1, 17791?], George
Rogers Clark Papers.

316

NOTES ON OLD C AH OKI A

Execution of their Office, are now altogether without authority: that crime
of the greatest enormity may be committed with Impunity, and a man bl
murdered in his own House and no person regard it: that they have nJ
Sheriff nor Prison: and to crown the general Confusion, that many peopL
have made large purchases of three or four hundred Leagues, and are en«
deavoring to have themselves established Lords of the Soil.10

It was probably with relief that Virginia signed over to the
Continental Congress all claims to her Illinois County earl;
in 1784.11

The reign of terror which prevailed at Kaskaskia wa|
curbed at Cahokia by the firmness of its court. Nevertheless
many distressed Cahokians crossed the river to join their kin;
folk and make a fresh start in business under Spanish protec:
tion. Among these was Charles Gratiot, one of the ablest met
of the region. He had taken an active part in the defensd
against the British, but, because of the insecurity of Cahoki;:
and its disadvantageous trade position, he decided to movej
He had been caught with a large amount of American pape;
money, which, as he complained, wouldn’t buy a cat in St
Louis. 'The harder I work, the deeper I plunge into a mas!
of debts,” wrote Gratiot in 1779. "If business continues an;
longer on this footing, I shall be obliged in spite of my inclina
tions, to become a Spaniard.” During the anxious days of 178(|
he sent valuable goods to St. Louis for safety and in the fol
lowing year he moved to that place to share in the Indiai
trade from which those on the American side of the river werj
excluded.12

10 Walker Daniel to the Commissioners for Adjustment of Western Account
Feb. 3, 1783. Calendar of^ Virginia State Papers , Vol. Ill (Richmond, 1883), 431.

11 W. W. Edwards, "The Laws in Force in Illinois Prior to its Statehood,” Journ\
of the Illinois State Historical Society, Vol. XXI, no. 3 (Oct., 1928), 386.

12 Of Swiss origin, Gratiot had joined a partnership with two Scottish traders-!
David McCrae and John Kay, of Montreal — and another Swiss by the name of Bartn
Grison. Gratiot arrived in the Illinois country in 1777 — just before the Revolutionar
War broke there. Some of his letters from Cahokia have been preserved and thro1
light on fur trade operations of the period.

Business of the upper Mississippi settlements with Spanish New Orleans W2
brisk and attracted the envy of Gratiot. He left us some interesting notes concernin
it. An ideal thirty-ton cargo, for instance, which took three months to row, sail, poll
and pull up the river consisted of forty barrels of rum on the bottom, twelve hundre
blankets, "Indian Cloth” and other goods. Rum, bought at New Orleans for twent

CHARLES E. PETERSON

317

In spite of the uncertainties of trade and politics, many
scattered official documents of the period have survived. Some
of these provide information on the earlier periods impossible
to find elsewhere. This is particularly true in the interesting
matter of managing the fields of Cahokia where land-use
practices were an inheritance from medieval France and re-
mained relatively unchanged for many years. Here, as in each
of the villages of the Illinois country, the great community
project was the building and maintenance of a fence between
the commons and the plowlands. All proprietors of fields were
compelled to participate in this activity, which dated back to
:he beginnings of farming at Cahokia. The work appears to
lave been onerous and difficult to manage. The records are
[full of disputes and litigation, especially at times when dis-
cipline was relaxed. In 1756, for instance, it was alleged that
:he habitants of Cahokia had let their fence fall into such bad
•epair that the mission cattle were straying to great distances
vhere they were killed by both Indians and French.13 There
vere suits for damages resulting from cattle and hogs break-
ng through the fence,14 instances where the land was for-
feited for nonmaintenance of the fence,15 and where the owner
voluntarily gave up to save the expense involved.16

dollars or less a barrel, sold in the Illinois country at a nice profit — enough to pay
. tor the freight of the whole cargo and on arrival usually absorbed all the ready cash
|a the place.

Gratiot’s letters early in the war reflect the embarrassed position of British traders
n the Mississippi. Also worried about a local crop failure, high prices, and the
, hortage of goods, to eke out his stock, he encouraged the Cahokians to grow tobacco
nd put it up in rolls, as done in London. One barge load of his goods sent up the
j Mississippi to Prairie du Chien actually carried seven or eight hundred pounds of
!*Carot Tobacco” along with foodstuffs and peltries. He also considered driving a
undred horses to Williamsburg, Virginia, for sale to the Continental Army. Various
itters of the years 1778-1779, written by Gratiot at Cahokia and included among the
iratiot Papers, Billon Translations (MSS, Missouri Historical Society, St. Louis),
or a life of Gratiot, see Frederic L. Billon, comp., Annals of St. Louis in Its Early
) ays under the French and Spanish Dominations (St. Louis, 1886), 177-96, 214-15,
j. 21-25.

13 Laurens to , Cahokia, June 7, 1756, MS, Archives of the Seminary of

luebec (A.S.Q.), Missions, no. 26.

1 j Alvord, Cahokia Records, 47 , 123, 139, 183, 249.

15 Charles Buteaux to Antoine Cesirre, Cahokia, March 24, 1777. Perrin Col-
:ction (MSS. Ilb‘no;s State Archives, Springfield).

16 Alvord, Cahokia Records, 171.

318

NOTES ON OLD CAHOKIA

The great fence was managed by officials called "syndics
elected at assemblies of the proprietors. The regulations mad
at these assemblies were modified from time to time. Twl
known sets of them are evidently based on the practice o
many years.17

A manuscript of 1785 in the Perrin Collection show
that for some years — probably due to the troubles of th
Revolutionary War — the fences had been in bad shape an<
much of the crops destroyed by straying stock. Antoine Gii
ardin, Commandant of Cahokia, called the proprietors tc
gether and told them that they must either agree conscienb
ously to keep up the common fence, or drop the whole sy?
tern altogether and let each farmer fence by himself. It wa
decided to continue the original system, and a new set of reg
ulations was proposed and adopted.

Among the specific points agreed on at two meetings-;
held on April 6 and June 7, 1785 — we find the following:

( 1 ) Fencing delinquents shall pay the cost of having their fences r<|
paired by the syndics, and a fine of 30 livres as well. "No excuses shall t
accepted under pretext of a journey, absence or other hindrance, even cm
sickness.” When necessary, private property of the delinquent shall be seize
and sold to pay the costs. [See Alvord, Cahokia Records, 145, 221.]

(2) No one shall "scale the fences under pretext of shortening the
path, which is the ruin of the fences.” (Fines: 10 livres for damaging tl
fence by climbing over, 20 livres for making a hole in it.) Masters shall fc!
responsible for informing their slaves.

(3) Pigs may be killed when found in the wheat and rye fields. Fc
apprehending stray cattle and horses, a fee of 10 livres.

(4) Hunters and others shall not build fires on these fields, thus crea|
ing a hazard to both fence and forage. (Fee for fighting fires, 150 livri
and/or damages, further punishment may include confinement in irons f(j
eight days.)

(5) V olontaires (who seem not to have owned land) shall pay 15 livrl
for right of pasturage on the commons, the same to be paid on April 1 an!
the receipts applied to a village public works fund.

17 They also correspond generally with regulations of the Spanish side of tl
river. The St. Louis common field regulations of Sept. 22, 1782, are published :
Billon, Annals of St. Louis, 217-20. Regulations for Ste Genevieve fencing may 1
found in the "Ste Genevieve Archives,” Missouri Historical Society, St. Louis,
definitive treatment of this subject, based on the manuscripts of all the French villag J
would be most interesting.

CHARLES E. PETERSON

319

(6) The fencing of the Prairie du Pont fields shall be maintained by
separate arrangement from that of Cahokia and the stock of the two villages
kept apart — each on its own commons.

Francois Courier was appointed receiver of fines, and to
the document, drawn up by Labuxiere the clerk, six habitants
signed their names and thirty-seven made their marks.* 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 * * * * * * * * * * 18 *

The syndics, who were empowered to revise or add to
jthese regulations, set the period for opening the fields to
stock for winter forage as November 15 to March 20. 10 They
also made the stipulation that any gardens or orchards would
iave to be enclosed at the expense of the owner.20 The time
of harvest was another matter fixed for the entire community.21
Among the functionaries of this system was the keeper

18 Perrin Collection (MSS, Illinois State Archives, Springfield).

Another code was formulated at a village assembly on January 17, 1808. This
s quite different from the one just described but seems to complement rather than con-
radict it. It was stipulated in the agreement that:

(1) The fence shall be five feet (French) high.

(2) Each proprietor shall fence the front side of his own strip and an
equitable section of the other three sides.

(3) Six syndics, meeting annually on Jan. 6, shall be named by the
assembly to apportion the fencing.

(4) Each section of fence shall be branded with the proprietor’s name.

(5) A clerk (greffier) shall be appointed each year to keep the records
and for this be paid a half minot of wheat by each proprietor.

(6) The job of inspecting the fence shall be awarded to the low bidder,
bids to be taken on each Jan. 6.

(7) The lands of anyone failing to maintain his section of fence, after

due warning by the syndics, shall be sold to the high bidder.

The syndics were named at this meeting and the document approved by forty-

ne subscribers. It contains the statement, "The existence of all the individuals at
lahokia demands absolutely that the Common fields { Champ Commun } should be
.ecurely fenced at all times so that each and every person may sow or plant in said
Common fields.” The subscribers, to show their good faith, mortgaged their own
lands as guarantee.

An affidavit made by a fence inspector named Beaulieu illustrates the functions
|f that position. Beaulieu had been sent by the syndic to survey the fence {fane la
I isite). He found broken pickets (pieux) in the fences of Messrs. Lepage and

rottier, but no signs that any animals had gone through. There were, however,

efinite signs that hogs had passed through a breach in the fence of M. La Croix.
| Perrin Coll.) March 7, 1783.

19 Complications due to the raising of winter grains (planted in the autumn and
| arvested in the spring) show up in the records. John Reynolds wrote, "The French,
I i those days, mostly sowed Spring wheat; so that the wheat crop was preserved in

ie spring, which was the object of being rigid in repairing the fences. Sometimes

'heat was sowed late in the fall, and the cattle did not much injure it during the

inter.” John Reynolds, Pioneer History of Illinois (Belleville, 111., 1852), 49.

20 These regulations, in extremely bad French, are recorded in St. Clair County

.ecords, Book of Deeds, B, pp. 421-23. The common field fencing system of St.

ouis had broken down about ten years earlier.

21 Reynolds, Pioneer History, 49.

320

NOTES ON OLD CAHOKIA

who tended the gate where the road to the individual field
passed through the great fence. This is revealed in the recorc
of a lawsuit of 1782 showing that when the gatekeeper (wh<
was a Negro belonging to Jean Baptiste Saucier) opened th<
gate to let through a charette, a hog had inadvertently beeif f
allowed to get through. The hog was killed to protect th<
crops and its owner then sued Saucier for damages.22

The Cahokia court also held jurisdiction over land mat
ters. Oh June 11, 1783, for instance, a court was held to dis
pose of unallotted lands at Prairie du Pont by the drawing
of lots,23 and in 1786 the court conceded plowlands with :
10 -arpent front and 44 -arpent depth to Anglo-American new;
comers.24

The Virginians appreciated the wisdom of the Frencl
system of laying out these river bottom lands. As Colone!
Todd wrote in 1779, "The Low Lands upon the Great River! ■,
are exceedingly fertile & ought not to be subject to the saml ;
Regulations of Settling as other Lands, they should run bad
5 or 10 [?J times its width through the Low Ground & hav<;
anexed a Common or pasture on the bank .... 400 acres .
running 3 times its width along the River wd. ruin it.”1
Thomas Jefferson, then governor, agreed, believing "The manj j
ner in which the Lots of Land are laid off about the Frencl \
Villages . . . very wise & worthy of imitation,”26 and it wai
officially continued during the Virginia regime.27

Having had a taste of land speculators, the holdings of th( <
habitants at this time were naturally a matter of great anxieti I
to them. In the French regime there had always been mob I
land than needed, and the first settlers had been content t| i

take only such acreage as they could individually enclose anc| i

■

22Alvord, Cahokia Records, 139, 1 41.

23 Act of Jan. 20. 1781. Alvord, Cahokia Records, 567.

24A'vord. Cahokia Records , 587.

25 John Todd [?] to your Excellency, July 1, 1779[?], George Rogers Clark PaperlB

26 Thomas Jefferson to George Rogers Clark, Williamsburg, Jan. 29, 178( I
James A. James, George Rogers Clark Papers, 171 1-1781 ( Illinois Historical CollelM
Hons, VIII, Springfield, 1912), 387.

CHARLES E. PETERSON

321

cultivate. The land grabbing attempted by the British and
Americans became a formidable threat to the community.

It was not until 1787 that the Northwest Ordinance set
up a regular territorial government. Brigadier General Josiah
'Harmar, acting governor at the time, inspected Cahokia in
August of that year 28 with Barthelemi Tardiveau, who was
>oon to be appointed agent of the Illinois country landowners
oefore the Continental Congress.29 The magistrates and prin-
:ipal inhabitants of Cahokia made an agreement with Tar-
liveau on August 27, by which the latter was to receive one-
:enth of the lands conceded to pay him for his efforts and
:or incidental expenses.30 After much eloquent promotion at
3hiladephia an act was passed in 1788 directing that measures
oe taken immediately for confirming land titles to the old set-
ters on the Mississippi who had taken the oath of allegiance
n or before the year 1783. 31

The Act also included a grant of 400 acres to each family,
ntended as indemnity for damages suffered during the Vir-
ginia occupation under George Rogers Clark. Pursuant to
his, Governor St. Clair directed the inhabitants to come forth
and exhibit proofs of the right of ownership.32 As to the Ca-
lokia Mission grant, that vast area — most of it never de-
veloped— was reunited to the public domain.33

The laws of the Northwest Territory were considerately

28 Reporting his visit of Aug. 19, Josiah Harmar wrote: "Cahokia is a village
i f nearly the same size as that of Kaskaskia, and inhabited by the same kind of people.

, heir number was two hundred and thirty-nine old men and young. I was received
pith the greatest hospitality by the inhabitants. There was a decent submission and
^spect in their behavior.’’ Josiah Harmar to Secretary of War, Fort Harmar, Nov.

| <4, 1787. William Henry Smith, ed., The St. Clair Papers (Cincinnati, 1882),
|ji3i.

2!> For a life of Tardiveau and a discussion of this period, see Howard C. Rice, '
ij arthelmi Tardiveau, A French Trader in the West (Baltimore, 1938). Tardiveau
| jad come from France during the American Revolution, had lived later in Kentucky,

'as acquainted with the local problem and sympathetic with the Illinois French. He
as appointed Judge of Probate in St. Clair County in 1790, and died at New Madrid,
[pper Louisiana, in 1801.

30 Alvord, Cahokia Records, 591, 593.

31 Act of June 20, 1788. Clarence E. Carter, ed., Territorial Papers of the United
'ates, III (Washington, 1934), 296-97-

32 Proclamation of March 7, 1790. Ibid.

33 Proclamation of April 22, 1790. Ibid., 297-301.

322

NOTES ON OLD CAHOKIA

designed to maintain the status quo in the French villages
The enclosing and cultivating of the common fields was re
quired in accordance with the old traditions. '4 The Cahokk
commons was also continued, ownership being confirmed tc
the villagers by act of Congress,35 and for the first time thi:i
tract was formally laid off as an area of 5,400 acres.36

The same summer, to put an end to the thievery whicl
had been working havoc in the fields and gardens, the com
mandant had posted and read at the church door a specia
proclamation. Anyone convicted was subjected to a fine o:
100 livres, half of which would go to the informer and hal:
into the public funds. Culprits might also be put in irons fo:
eight days and "paraded through the village of Cahokia witl
the marks of their theft hanging from their collar." This docu
ment is interesting also in that it names some of the current
crops as "wheat and rye, corn, peas, beans, pumpkins, melon:
and other vegetables.”37'

Although great emphasis must be laid on the character! .
istic compactness of the Cahokia community, there were a num
ber of outlying establishments, some as far as several miles
The activities at these points were naturally in inverse rela
tion to the hostility of the Indians. Whenever the savage
went on the warpath, the outlanders made haste for refugi
in the old village.

The main dependency of Cahokia was Prairie du Pon
to the south, a village that still exists. The evolution of thi 1
settlement is obscure. John Reynolds wrote that it was begui
in 1760 and had fourteen families in 1765.38 There is evij .
dence, however, that the settlement was first formed on grantj y
of land made about 1779 or 1780 by the owner, Antoim *|

34 Theodore Calvin Pease The La^os of the Northwest Territory , 1788-180 1
(Illinois Historical Collections, XVII, Springfield, 1925), 498-501.

35 Act of March 3. 1791. Carter, Territorial Papers, 11:341.

36 American State Papers . Public Lands . II (Washington, 1834), 194. No limit 1
for the commons could then be found "in the ancient records.”

37 Perrin Collection, Aug. 28, 1785.

38 Reynolds, Pioneer History, 48. Reynolds’ testimony has been proven ir
accurate in many details.

CHARLES E. PETERSON

323

Girardin.39 In spite of some opposition to its establishment,
the Court of Cahokia in 1783 acknowledged the existence of
the new hamlet and laid off for it a separate commons and
common fields.40 A year later its fences were ordered estab-
lished and maintained.41

Farther south, along the road to Fort Chartres and at the
point where it climbed the bluff, a small village of Anglo-
Americans called Grand Ruisseau was settled in 1781. These
people came up from the mouth of the Ohio River when Vir-
ginia troops abandoned the fort there.42 Although the new-
comers were placed under the jurisdiction of the Cahokia
court, they maintained a separate identity for some years. The
settlement was dispersed after peace was made with the In-
dians and it became safe to live on outlying farms.

North of Cahokia the American Bottom widens greatly.
Across this vast flat area of plains, woods, and ox-bow lakes,
:he Riviere a V Abbe — now Cahokia Creek — once meandered.
Along its course in the eighteenth century were to be found
u number of interesting establishments.

At the point where Canteen Creek comes down from the
fills and joins Cahokia Creek, still rises that great prehistoric
earthwork, the "Great Nobb,” now called Monks’ Mound.43
Immediately west of this was La Cantine, a trading post opened
ibout 1777, or soon after the British Army left the Illinois
country. It appears to be an example of American enterprise
:ompeting with Spanish St. Louis and was managed by one
f.saac Levy, together with Jean Baptiste Hubert dit La Croix,
ean Dumoulin, and Thomas Brady. La Cantine was oper-

39 Alvord, Cahokia Records, 89- (April 23, 1780.)

40 Ibid., 153, 565, 567. (June 11, 1780.)

41 Ibid., 157, 159- (Feb. 5, 1784.) By 1784 land had already been forfeited
| or nonmaintenance of the fence. {Ibid., 171, June 3, 1784.) Antoine Girardin,

ommandant and magistrate at Prairie du Pont, was still granting lands in 1786.
Ibid., 591, notice, Feb. 26, 1786.) In 1790 he had a stone house under construction
diich must have been the mansion of the place. (Carter, Territorial Papers, II: 266.)

42 Alvord, Cahokia Records, cxxii.

43 The mound is now preserved, with smaller ones, in the Cahokia Mounds
tate Park. It rises to a height of 104 feet and is the largest in the United States.

324

NOTES ON OLD C AH OKI A

ated until 1784 when the general outbreak of Indian troubles
caused it to be given up44 and the proprietors returned to
Cahokia.

Farther down the Riviere a 1’ Abbe was the establishment
of Richard McCarty, a native of Connecticut who had come
down from Michilimackinac as a trader.45 This was begun in
1775 by permission of the British commandant. Soon after-
ward, enclosures for cultivation and a watermill were built.4]
From this place, which McCarty called "St. Urseuls,” he could
watch what was going on in the new town of St. Louis on the
opposite bank of the Mississippi at short distance. Things;
went well here until the war reached Cahokia.47 McCarty;

44 "Kaskaskia French and English Deed Records,” A: 319, 320. (MSS in the!
State Auditor’s Office, Springfield.) The deposition of 1799 showed that La Cantina
was located "about twelve miles above Cahokia . . . near where the old French church)
formerly stood.” This is evidently the separate church built for the Indians aboui|’
1735 and called in that year by Father Merrier "our new church at the Indian!
village.” ASQ, Polygraph 9, no. 15. Clarence W. Alvord, The Illinois County, 7673-
1818 (Springfield, 1920), 200. The claim is identified as no. 902, American State [
Papers, Public Lands, II: 160.

The activities of the traders involved with La Cantine are more or less con]
tinuous. In 1779 County Lieutenant John Todd granted a short term monopoly
of the Indian trade in the region between Cahokia and the Illinois River to Levy, Lai
Croix, and Charles Gratiot on condition of their good conduct, Alvord, Cahokia
Records, 463, 465.

Evidently things did not always run smoothly at this establishment and amond
its proprietors, for the wife of trader Henson in 1779 was found "guilty of evil
speech with the savages” and ordered to leave. Ibid., 29- This was the woman whci
was beaten within an inch of her life by Alexis Brisson for malicious gossip. Ibid. j
3 3 4-3 5 n. The partnership must have fallen apart soon afterward, for in 1781 La
Croix was suing Levy for repayment of a note handled at Michilimackinac. Ibid., 99

In 1782 the Cahokia Court gave special permission to La Croix to trade withf
the Indians on condition that he would not furnish them liquor at the village and
that he give preference to Cahokians over others. The nature of the goods traded is
indicated on a list of fixed prices in the agreement:

Oil at three livres ten sols.

Tallow at one livre ten sols.

Spare ribs at seven livres ten sols.

The meat of deer at ten livres.

Smoked hides at five livres.

Alvord, Cahokia Records, 127. This privilege was given up by La Croix three and
one-half years later "for reason known to himself,” Ibid., 213-

45 Arent S. De Peyster to Frederick Haldimand, Michilimackinac, Aug. 15, 1778
Michigan Pioneer and Historical Society Collections, IX (Lansing, 1886), 368
Petition, June 10, 1779, "Kaskaskia French and English Deed Records,” B:101.

46 Alvord, Cahokia Records, 465. Pursuant to Claim No. 1316, the heirs oi
McCarty were confirmed in possession of a 400-acre tract "adjoining the common:
field of Cahokia, including his former mill on the river 1’Abbe.” American State Papers
Public Lands, II : 160.

47 Richard McCarty to John Askin, "St. Urseuls at the Illinois,” June 7, 1778
Mich. Pioneer and Hist. Soc. Coll., IX: 368-69- The name was doubtless given in

CHARLES E. PETERSON

325

decided to throw in his lot with George Rogers Clark and
was soon serving as a captain in the Illinois regiment.48 In
McCarty’s absence his mill dam was carried away in a freshet
and although he was assured that a regiment of Virginians
would encamp near by and help him rebuild it,49 nothing
appears to have been done. McCarty was killed in 1781 while
enroute on a mission to Richmond, and the mill was appar-
ently abandoned.50

Another mill somewhere on the Riviere a l’ Abbe was
:hat of Antoine Girardin, built with the permission of the
.Cahokia commandant, Captain John Shee, about 1771. Little
iis known of it except that it cost a considerable sum and ran
only a few months.51 The post of Jean Baptiste Cardinal at
)r near the site of modern Alton might also be considered a
lependency of Cahokia. When the proprietor was captured
py the Indians his family took refuge at the latter place.52

Characteristic features of the Illinois country not men-
ioned above were the sugar camps ( sucreries ) to which the
Trench repaired in early spring to make maple sugar. The

,ionor of the patron saint of his Canadian wife, nee Ursule Benoist. On Feb. 6, 1777,
jvlcCarty wrote to Rocheblave that he had sent for "an Englishman who was said
|0 be at Misere [Ste Genevieve, Missouri] a man very expert in the building of mills
, . .” Edward G. Mason, ed., Early Chicago and Illinois ( Chicago Historical Society’s
Collections, IV, Chicago, 1890), 384.

48 Richard McCarty to his wife, April 28, 1779. Alvord, Cahokia Records,

> 29. On June 4, 1779, McCarty posted a notice that he was going out of business

Alvord, Cahokia Records, 461), but on the following day he was licensed at Kas-
askia to trade with subjects and friends of the United States and to erect factories
nd stores. Mason, Early Chicago and Illinois, 296-97.

49 Alvord, Cahokia Records, 529. While living on Cahokia Creek he had the

onsolation of an Indian girl named Lisette, whom he manumitted from slavery.

:^hen he was serving with the Virginia regiment, his mill dam not only washed
way but his cattle got loose in the Cahokia common fields, where they were shot by
ie farmers. McCarty, as an army officer, because of his arbitrary nature, got into
ther trouble with the French inhabitants during the occupation of Cahokia. Alvord,
hid., 614-15. McCarty’s will, made April 5, 1781, was recorded in "Kaskaskia French
nd English Deed Records,” B:99-

50 Alvord, Cahokia Records, cii, ciii.

51 The site was to be selected "in a place where the Inhabitants Shall point
ut, or being most convenient to the Publick.” "Kaskaskia French and English Deed
ecords,” A: 180, B:56. This may have been identical or connected with the McCarty
fill on the same stream mentioned above. Girardin had another mill which he
Dandoned in 1782. Alvord, Cahokia Records, 129- None of these river, bottom-
nd mill sites seems to have been successful.

52 American State Papers: Public Lands, II: 221.

326

NOTES ON OLD CAHOKIA

land records identify some of those near Cahokia. The Barron
brothers had such a tract 16 arpents square from before the
year 1755, 53 the Beaulieu family one at La Prairie du Pain
de Sucre (Sugar-loaf Prairie) granted them by the mission-
ary proprietors in 1763, 54 and the Marleau family another
on the bottoms at "Big Lake” from the year 1769. 55

During the Indian outbreaks after the Revolutionary
War the Cahokians seemed to have abandoned these isolated .
establishments to stay close to their village. Even after the dis-
astrous flood of 1785 nearly all seem to have returned to the! |
old home in the bottoms.56

ARCHITECTURAL LANDMARKS

Very little is left of eighteenth century Cahokia, possibly
only two buildings — the Old Courthouse and the Church of
the Holy Family. Few facts are known about either, but be-
cause of their unique character as landmarks in the oldest
settlement on the Mississippi, every available scrap of infor-i
mation regarding their origin is presented here.

The Courthouse is the earlier of the two. Its construction ,
and ownership have often been attributed to an engineer of
the French army named Saucier, but that is quite certainl)
an error. Francois Saucier was a "sub-engineer” who came
up to the Illinois country in 1751 on orders to rebuild its de- 1
fences.57 He died there February 26, 17 57, 58 at least two oi
three years before the completion of Fort Chartres, his prin

53 "Kaskaskia French and English Deed Records,” A: 192.

54 Alvord, Cahokia Records, 223-27. The Trottier family had one about fifn
acres in size at the same place, sold Dec., 1802. "Kaskaskia French and Englisl
Deed Records,” B:73, 74. Five claims for sugar camps were reviewed in 1803
Ibid., A:253, 254.

55 "Kaskaskia French and English Deed Records,” B : 7 1 .

56 Right after the flood Pierre Martin and Thomas Brady got concessions a
the Little Prairie on the bluffs for safety from the river, but their example does no
seem to have been generally followed. Alvord, Cahokia Records, 197.

57 Orders, Vaudreuil and Michel to Saucier, Aug. 27, 1751. Paris, Archive.
Nationales, Colonies, C13A, 38: 20.

58 Desclozeaux to , July 11, 1757, Paris, Archives Nationales, Colonies

C13A, 31: 290.

CHARLES E. PETERSON

327

Cahokia's Famous Church of the Holy Family

Although this photograph was taken in 1934 the church’s appearance
changed very little between the two restorations of 1913 and 1948. The
;nodern siding, window sash, and metal roofing cover a heavy hewn frame
of French carpentry.

:ipal work,59 and his widow, who was left in impoverished
:ircumstances with a numerous family, was certainly in no
position to buy one of the most substantial houses on the main
•treet of Cahokia.

The building appears on the Hutchins map (c. 1769) 00
ust west of the parade ground and facing the Rigolet, when
t was occupied by Jean Roy dtt Lapance,61 probably as a
private residence. It was enclosed with two smaller buildings
>n a standard-size lot about one arpent square and behind it
lay an orchard of similar size. Another Francois Saucier,62 a

59 In the fall of 1759 the masonry of the Fort de Chartres was still incomplete.

Kochemore to , June 23, 1760. Paris, Archives Nationales, Colonies, C13A,

1 1 2 : 118. These Paris references I owe to Mr. Sam Wilson, New Orleans architect.

fi0 See June, 1949, Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society, p. 200.

91 According to Alvord ( Cahokia Records , p. 625 n. 13), the full name was
ean Roy dit Lapance. He emigrated from Lachine, Canada, before 1752, when he
tarried Marie Pancrasse at Cahokia.

02 For a discussion of the Illinois Sauciers see Belting, Kaskaskia Under the
II rench, p. 29 n. 15.

328

NOTES ON OLD CAHOKIA

leading Cahokian, some years later married into the Lapancej
family and acquired title to the property.63 In 1792, after the1
death of his wife, he sold off the rear, or orchard lot,64 and
three years later disposed of the house itself to the Cahokia
Court of Common Pleas.

Northwest Territory had been subdivided for purposes
of administration in 1790. The western part — the vast region
between the Illinois and Ohio rivers — was designated as St.
Clair County. The villages on the American Bottom were so;
far apart that for the convenience of the citizens attending
court the new county was divided into three judicial districts!
— those of Cahokia, Prairie du Rocher, and Kaskaskia.63

Not long afterward at Cahokia a "Town House” or
"maison de ville” was bought for public use but was soon:
afterward exchanged for the Lapance-Saucier house.66 This!
was then "converted into a prison and Court House” under1
the authority of a territorial statute entitled "An Act direct-
ing the building and Establishing of a Court House, County
Jail, Pillory, Whipping Post and Stocks in every County.”67

In 1795, when Randolph County (including Kaskaskia)
was split off, Cahokia became the real seat of St. Clair County.

63 John Hay, "Alphabetical List of Old French Sales, Inventories and Marriagej
Contracts,” Perrin Collection, lists a marriage contract between Francois Saucier and
"Jos. Lapence” in 1780. In 1786 Saucier was already married to Angelique Lapensej
who died the following year, aged twenty-five years. John F. McDermott, ed., Old
Cahokia (St. Louis, 1949), 259-61.

64 "Kaskaskia French and English Deed Record,” A: 152. The orchard was
sold on Nov. 10, 1792, to Jean Dumoulin. The latter sold it to William Strong'
Jan. 21, 1805, "Book of Deeds,” B:292, whose son sold it to Francois Vaudry, Jan
17,1817, "Book of Deeds,” B:227 thus reuniting the two lots.

65 Smith, St. Clair Papers, II: 165 n.l., 172, 173.

66 The cost of this acquisition seems to have been financed by a general sub-
scription, to which the Michilimackinac Company made a substantial gift. Perrin
Collection, "Minutes of the Court of Quarter Sessions, March 3, 1792.” A bill in
the Perrin Collection dated July 28, 1795, also speaks of the "Town House.”

67 St. Clair County Records, Deed Book A, 172, 173.

Gov. St. Clair in 1790 ordered a prison built at Cahokia and a subscription

was taken for the purpose but nothing was done at the time. Carter, Territorial
Papers, 11:308. Brink, McDonough & Co., History of St. Clair County, Illinois
(Philadelphia, 1881), 85. A grand jury report to the Cahokia Court of Quarter
Sessions on October 4, 1791, recommended "That for the Support of the Laws &
Government of our County the Speediest Means be taken to have a propper Jail
in this Villiage, such as the State of this District may Afford in its present Situation.’
McDermott, Old Cahokia, 141.

CHARLES E. PETERSON

329

Official records of this period show that six hundred mul-
berry pickets, seven and a half feet long, were ordered to re-
pair the stockade around the courthouse lot and that there
was a well on the premises.08 In 1809 benches and a table were
bought for $15. 69 At first the jail was kept in the courthouse
itself, but in 1812 a separate log structure was built on the
same lot. A contract was let to Francois Turcott, Stephen
Pensineau, and Augustine Pensineau for $2 00. 70 Remarkably
enough, no one seems to have left any further description of
he courthouse in this period, even though after the year 1800
t was the center of government for a vast region extending

0 Canada and an administrative and judicial headquarters
luring the exciting days of the War of 1812.

When the county seat was moved to Belleville in 1814
he public furniture was hauled away71 and the old courthouse
ordered sold.72 Early in 1816 John Hays, sheriff, transferred
he property to Francois Vaudry73 whose heirs passed it on

68 A. S. Wilderman and A. A. Wilderman, History of St. Clair County (Chicago,
1 907, Vol. II of Bateman and Selby, Historical Encyclopedia of Illinois), 700. The
jounty had to pay damages for a colt that fell into the well.

69 Brink, McDonough, History of St. Clair County, 81.

70 Specifications for the building, which was completed October 1, 1812, were
flogs to be 18 and 14 feet long and wide, a partition in it so as to make a room of
even feet on the west, hewed logs, 8 inches thick for the floor, seven feet between
;ie floors, 2 rounds of logs above the upper floor, to be covered with clapboards,
jibin fashion, done well, the logs to be 12 inches in diameter at the small end, if
Jewed to be ten inches thick all to be done of good oak timber; the outer door hung as

ie old door and hinges will do; the roof to be weighted with heavy logs.” Brink,
JlcDonough, History of St. Clair County, 81.

71 George Blair was paid six dollars for hauling the benches, seats, and tables
■ om the old to the new courthouse. Ibid., 183.

72 "Ordered that the former Court House & Jail in Cahokia with the Lot of
1 1 round, be sold at Public Sale on Monday the 16th October next at one year’s
| redit by giving good Security in a Bond . . . and the Sheriff to put up 2 advertise-
- ents one in Cahokia and one at this Courthouse.” County Record Book, Sept. Term,
Ml 5 (MSS, Belleville, 111.).

1 73 March 8, 1816, consideration, $225, "Book of Deeds,” C:226. There seems
have been some kind of scandal connected with this transaction. The County

ourt at the October term, 1817, noted that Sheriff Hays had sold the courthouse
id jail "for a considerable sum of money, collected said money and rendered no
count how or in what manner he has disposed of said money.” They claimed that
is sort of thing had gone on for several years and decided to have him impeached,
o further action appears in the record, however, and Hays remained in office while
e judges did not.

330

NOTES ON OLD C AH OKI A

to Joseph Robidoux of St. Louis in 1831. 74 The later use oi
the building is obscure but we know that in 1873 the olcj
courthouse was a warehouse75 and in 1881 a saloon.76

With the passing of the years historical interest grew ir
the old building. As a curious specimen of early French archi
tecture, it was sent to the World’s Fair in St. Louis in 1904
and later moved to Jackson Park in Chicago.77 In 1939-194(*
such timbers as remained were brought back to Cahokia anc
re-erected on the original site.78 Now open as a "historic
house museum," it is one of the important relics of the Frencl
period, probably the only remaining example of a colonia
house in Illinois.

A little more is known about the Church of the Hoh
Family, but there is a period of years when it cannot be showr
that there was any church building at all in Cahokia. With the
departure of Abbe Forget du Verger the mission had come tc
and end and all effective ties with Quebec were lost. It wa:|
twenty-three years before Father Paul de St. Pierre, represent!

74 May 13, 1831, "Book of Deeds,” H:l. Robidoux sold the property t|
Charles Mousette, April 24, 1834, "Book of Deeds,” H:3. It was later acquired b|
George Lobenhofer, Sept. 7, 1857, "Book of Deeds,” T-2: 382. I owe most oj
these conveyance references to Miss Boylan and to Mr. Henry C. G. Schroder, c
Belleville.

75 Missouri Republican, July 26, 1873.

76 Smith, St. Clair Papers, 345n.

77 A note by Valentine Smith on a photograph in the Missouri Historical Societ j
states, "This building was erected . . . between 1704-12 ... of squared walnut logs

. . .It . . . was purchased from John Palmenier of Cahokia, Illinois by Alex. Celia c
E. St. Louis to be exhibited during World’s Fair. It now has a site waiting for i|
obtained from South Park Commissioners, on the Wooded Island, Jackson Pari}
Chicago, secured by the undersigned, who with the Chicago Historical Society i
Chicago Centennial Committee, 1903, Chas. A. Plamondon, Chairman, wish to prc|
serve it, in honor of the patriots who used it.”

Mr. Celia wrote, Nov. 13, 1904, that he had "the documents from the first cas
that was held in the courthouse, benches, table and the old gavel that was used U
that time.” Scrapbook at the Chicago Historical Society Library, F37V.C. 11-1.

78 While at Chicago the building was measured by the Historic America \
Buildings Survey, Earl Reed, district officer. The rebuilding at Cahokia was don
by the Illinois Department of Public Works under the general supervision of Ml
Joseph F. Booton, and the field supervision of Mr. Jerome Ray. The writer serve
as architectural consultant.

The structure would have been impossible to reconstruct had not a couple c;
good photographs been available showing how it stood before the first moving. On
of these appears on the cover of the March, 1949, issue of this Journal. By a carefi
analysis through projections, and an excavation of the site, working drawings wer
prepared. Many structural and other interior details were derived from a study <
existing Ste Genevieve buildings of the eighteenth century.

CHARLES E. PETERSON

331

ing the new Roman Catholic Church in America, came out
from Baltimore and brought about a revival.79 The Cahokians
reported early in the summer of 1787 that the original sale
iDf the church premises in 1763 had been declared null and
void by the local court and that title to the property had thus
:ome back to the parish.80 Construction activity was soon under
way.

For the purpose of lodging our cure we have begun by building a
priest’s house which has cost us almost five thousand livres. [They then
litate that the stone house] had been entirely ruined by the English and
American troops who have lodged there. The defacements and injuries it
pad suffered during the time it was abandoned were such that there remains
Itanding only the four walls, which can be repaired with much labor, for
;hey are without a roof or roofing [sans couvertures. combles ], floors and
.eilings [planchers], and the chimneys have tumbled down; there are some
ences on the land; the orchard has been so destroyed that there is left no
festige of it; all the other buildings have been destroyed even to the wells,
[vhich have been filled in.

We have decided to build a church of the ruins of this house, for our
iormer wooden church has fallen and we are obliged to say mass in a rented

79 Father Saint Pierre, at the request of the French Minister at Philadelphia
ind Bishop Carroll, came out to the Illinois country in 1785, when local records
efer to him as Cure of Kaskaskia. He took charge of the Cahokia parish, July 20,
j786. In Sept, of 1787 he was serving the Spanish parish of Ste Genevieve until

is Cahokia house was built or repaired and in 1789 he left the east bank perman-
ently. McDermott, Old Cahokia, 259- hones to Hamtramck, Oct. 29, 1789. Alvord
kaskaskia Records, 515.

80 The church property had been sold by Father Forget du Verger to Jean
^aptiste Lagrange, a merchant trader living in the Illinois country, on Nov. 5, 1763.
Jothing is said about a church in the contract of sale. McDermott, Old Cahokia,

j k 1-83- The stone house, some sixty feet in length, was then under construction and
pmpleted up to the roof, but Forget stopped building "at the moment of the sale.”
leurin to Boiret, Kaskaskia, June 11, 1768, Clarence W. Alvord, Trade and Politics,
i 767-1769 ( Illinois Historical Collections, XVI (Springfield, 1921), 313. Lagrange
bid the property to Valentine Jautard on June 4, 1765. About three years later
jiutard attempted to resell it to an Englishman, but Father Meurin, acting for the
jishop of Quebec, got the commandant to postpone the sale indefinitely. Meurin to
riand, Kaskaskia, June 11, 1768. Reuben Gold Thwaites, ed., Jesuit Relations,
I XXI: 37, 39.

The Hutchins map (ca. 1769) shows four buildings on the grounds as well as
ie orchard. The names of "Pier Du Main” and 'Jean Batist sans Fagon or
\ armand” are keyed to two of the buildings and presumably represent the then
! xupants. No church is identified. On May 8, 1768, du Verger’s house was re-
i Drted roofless and some time later it was fortified for use by British troops. As
e have seen, it was reoccupied by Americans in 1778 as "Fort Bowman.” In 1781
was ordered used as a prison by the Cahokia Court. Alvord, Cahokia Records, 95.

According to a note made by Lyman Draper (one page photostat in Map
ivision, Library of Congress, from Draper MSS, Wisconsin Historical Society, 5S55)
e du Verger stone house stood somewhat east of the present old frame church.

332

NOTES ON OLD CAHOKIA

house. We have commenced to work on our projected church which wil
cost us more than fifteen or sixteen thousand livres ,81

This was the present building, which was carried to comple
tion in the following years and is now the only church struc
ture remaining from the early days of the Illinois country
Indeed, it is probably the oldest still standing in the Mississipp
Valley.82

Just how Father St. Pierre and his wardens carried or
this project we can only conjecture. Across the Mississippi
several comparable churches were erected about this time,8
the inhabitants in general furnishing the materials while th<
carpentry was let out for bids. That there was a church func

81 Alvord, Kaskaskia Records, 563-64. The original (ASQ Missions no. 20 j
is cataloged as Lettre des deputes des habitants et marguilliers de la paroisse de i
St. Famille des Cohos au Superieur du Seminaire de Quebec, 6 juin 1787. Thfl
letter indicates that the doors and window and their frames — as well as some boards-|
were saved from Forget du Verger’s ruined house and used in the new church. Th J
present structure, when recently opened, showed evidences of re-used parts fror
older buildings.

82 By comparison we might note the Cane Ridge Meeting House, a horizon^
log structure near Paris, Bourbon County, Kentucky, built in 1791 (Edward Ij-
Rines, Old Historic Churches of America , New York, 1936, p. 251), and thj i
Cathedral built at New Orleans, 1792-1794. The latter, facing Jackson Park, thj i
old Place d’Armes, was begun in 1792 (on the site of an earlier church destroyed ba
fire) and completed in 1794. A central bell tower was added to the main facade ij
1824 from a design by Latrobe. In 1850 this tower fell, injuring the building whicH
was thereupon much altered and enlarged at a cost of $100,000. Another remodelin!
took place in 1881. T. P. Thompson, The St. Louis Cathedral of New Orlear\ \
(New Orleans, 1918). Mr. Richard Koch, district officer of the Historic America}
Buildings Survey in Louisiana, once told the writer that he doubted that any eigl

teenth-century materials remain in the structure.

83 The comparable village churches of the region and period were:

St. Louis, 1775. Palisadoed construction, 30 feet by 60 feet with galeril,
The specifications are preserved at the Missouri Historical Society, St. Louis.

Vincennes, 1786. Frame construction (sur solles et en colombage ) on a storif
foundation, 42 feet by 90 feet, plate height 17 feet. Gibault to Bishop of Quebel
June 6, 1786, Alvord, Kaskaskia Records, 53 6.

St. Charles, ca 1790. Oct. 30, 1789, the inhabitants of St. Charles (or Petiuj
Cotes) met at the house of Louis B’anchette, founder of the village, and agreed ii
erect a palisadoed church structure, 30 feet by 40 feet to be constructed the followini
spring. (MS, St. Charles Papers, Missouri Historical Society.) The agreement wJ
carried out, for in 1791 the church was ordered blessed.

New Madrid, 1793. (Church of St. Isidore) Feb. 18, 1793, Jacob Myers agree
to build a church according to the plans provided. This was to be 26 feet by 6
feet, 16 feet plate height, of frame construction (de colombage ) with board flooj
and ceilings and a pegged shingle roof. (MS, New Madrid Papers, Missouri Hi
torical Society. ) ML

Ste Genevieve, ca. 1794. Only fragments of documentary information and or
door hinge have survived from this church. Its size is not known. See Charles
Peterson, "Early Ste. Genevieve and Its Architecture,” Missouri Historical Reviei
Vol. XXXV. no. 2 (Jan., 1941), 230, 231.

CHARLES E. PETERSON

333

t Cahokia publicly supported we know from references to
ourt lines imposed in its behalf: for instance, when Ignace
Tatigny declared the village magistrates fools and was lined
ifty livres for relieving his feelings84 and likewise when
'rangois Saucier paid in six piastres for using insulting lan-
uage while intoxicated and resisting arrest.85 Masses for the
ead constituted another source of revenue.86 These funds
,rere probably available for purchases of such imports as
dndow glass. One tradition has it that two brothers by the
ame of Voudrie had the contract for the church construction,
sing timbers cut from the village commons, and that they were
aid in cash, hides, and grain.87

No doubt all the artisans of the village made their con-
ributions in skilled labor. There were probably not many
jch workmen because the declining population of Cahokia
ad small need of house-builders. Yet we have the names of
element Alarie (who also had the job of interior repairs on
le priest’s house) ,88 Pierre Martin,89 Michel Chartier,90 Pierre
risson,91 and Pierre Poupart dit La Fleur,92 all carpenters;
?rome Angot, joiner,93 and Charles Lefevre, master black-
jnith.94

How much of the church was completed during Father
It. Pierre’s sojourn does not appear. He was succeeded in the
ill of 1789 by Father Gibault, who stayed only two years.

84Alvord, Cahokia Records, 65 (1780).

85 Ibid., 399 (1789).

86 Ibid., 449. Tithes were collected for the support of the priests.

87 Frederick Beuckman, History of the Diocese of Belleville (Belleville, 111., 1914),
. The story was told by Louis LeCompte, who died in 1867 at the age of 88. The
riter has no information on the identity of these brothers.

88 Alvord, Cahokia Records, 249 (1786).

89 Martin could not have been in too good standing with Father St. Pierre for
I e latter, in 1789, had to get court action to recover from Martin some joists which
I longed to the church. Ibid., 391, 393.

90 Ibid., 235 (1786).

^Ibid., 329 (1788).

92 St. Clair County Archives, Book of Deeds, A, 2-4. He died on July 15, 1790,
ed 42 or 43 years, a native of Montreal. McDermott, Old Cahokia , 273.

93Kaskaskia French and English Deed Record B, 76 (1799).

94 Alvord, Cahokia Records, 355 (1789). Kaskaskia French and English Deed
‘cord A, 500 (1797). Lefevre had a lime kiln in 1784. Alvord, Cahokia Records,
5

334

NOTES ON OLD CAHOKIA

Although now remembered mostly as an American partisa
during the Revolution, Gibault was also something of a churc
builder, having to his credit one at Vincennes (1786) and on
at New Madrid (1793) . Church historian Rothensteiner give
part of the credit for the Church of the Holy Family to Vicaij 5
General Levadoux, a Sulpician who was at Cahokia fror
1792 to 1796.95

Moses Austin, of Connecticut and Virginia, producer c| |
lead and head of the family famous in Texas history, passe
through Cahokia in 1797 and noted the church as "a Fram
building and not large” dedicated to the Holy Family.
Whenever the building was physically completed, it was nc
until September, 1799, that it was "solemnly blessed” by Fathe
John Rivet of Vincennes under the name of the Good Shep
herd.97 An elaborate set of regulations for the wardens c
marguilliers pertaining to the rent of pews, maintenance c
the cemetery, and the handling of the secular affairs of tb| i.
church was adopted at this time.98

The building apparently did not take the weather vei
well and only ten years after its dedication the Trappist Gui
let, to punish the villagers, refused to say mass in the churc i.
until the roof was rebuilt and the windows repaired.99 Ijl
1833 the two small side wings were added, one for a sacrist
and one for an organ and choir. Father John Francis Reg
Loisel, son of a prominent French family of St. Louis, soo
afterward seems to have brought money to the church, for i

95 John Rothensteiner, History of the Archdiocese of St. Louis (St. Louis, 1928i 1
1:188.

96 Moses Austin, "A Memorandum of M. Austin’s Journey,” American Historic I
Review, Vol. V, no. 3 (Apr., 1900), 534.

97 Joseph P. Donnelly, The Parish of the Holy Family, Cahokia, Illinois, 169\ I
1949 (East St. Louis, 1949), 36. Both the names "Church of the Holy Famili ■
and "Church of the Good Shepherd” seem to have been applied to the church ai fj
parish at Cahokia in the first third of the nineteenth century. Catherine Schaefi I
"A Chronology of Missions and Churches in Illinois,” Illinois Catholic Historic M
Review, Vol. I, no. 1 (July, 1918), 104. The original name has prevailed in rece fi
years.

98 McDermott, Old Cahokia, 87-92.

99 Guillet to Bishop of Quebec, Cahokia, Dec. 14, 1809- Ibid., 291-

CHARLES E. PETERSON

335

1837 it was fully repaired and freshly painted and in 1840 a
wide lean-to against the rear was added.100

When the new stone church in the Victorian Gothic style
was dedicated in 1891 101 the old church was relegated to use
as a school and parish hall. Agitation for the preservation of
the old structure for sentimental reasons, however, began
shortly afterward,102 although nothing was accomplished until
the Rev. Robert Hynes collected funds from all over the United
States and completed a "restoration” in 1913. The exact nature
lof his work does not seem to have been recorded, except that
electric lights were installed "thus bringing the interesting
relic of the 18th century into remarkable touch with the
achievements of the 20th.”

By 1948 the old church had again become semi-ruinous
md, with the idea of effecting a restoration, much of the mod-
ern work was torn off.103 Some interesting discoveries were
nade. The oldest part of the existing church consists of a
iimple rectangle thirty-two feet by seventy-four feet and four
nches,104 entered at the north end. The wall construction is of
nassive vertical hewn timbers seven inches thick and ten to
welve inches wide, spaced about nine inches apart and braced
liagonally at the corners. The edges of these posts were chan-

100 Robert Hynes, "The Old Church at Cahokia,” III. Cath. Hist. Rev., Vol. I,
ho. 4 (Apr., 1919), 462. Dr. J. F. Snyder in the Belleville Advocate, July 23, 1908.
Xoisel was at Cahokia, 1836-1845.

101 Donnelly, Parish of the Holy Family, 58.

102 Belleville Daily Advocate , Nov. 3, 1904. Preliminary steps for its preser-
vation were said to have been taken by Bishop Janssen a few years later. Ibid. July
13, 1908.

103 A preliminary opening of the walls was done under the direction of the
t j/riter on Nov. 6, 1948, and many features were found then and since then which

I ?ere not visible to the Historic American Buildings Survey measuring crew and do
i ot appear on their drawings. The building was measured in 1934 under the direc-
on of Edgar Lundeen, of Bloomington, district officer.

The restoration, begun soon afterward, was done under the supervision of
ather Mueller and Guy Study, F. A. I. A., of St. Louis. Construction is by the
tercules Construction Company, Ed. Ross, foreman. Funds were generously pro-
ided by Joseph Desloge, of Florissant, Mo., and the; Bishop of Belleville.

104 These dimensions are similar to those of the du Verger presbytere, on the
rundations of which it may rest. Ar_ archaeological exploration is proposed by
hich an underlying structure may be discovered.

336

NOTES ON OLD CAHOKIA

nelled to receive a filling of lime and rubble or pzerrotage,10w
a sample of which was still in place when the restoration work
began. This type of wall construction, typically French, wan
common in Normandy and is found in Canada and in sur-
viving houses of the Illinois country, such as the Bolduc House
in Ste Genevieve and the Lamarque house at Old Mines, Mis- -i
souri. The walls of the Cahokia church were not built ver-
tical— they slope inward some five inches from bottom to top; fj
on all sides — another feature typical of the Illinois French
carpentry.

The main entry of the church was a wide round-headed >i
door in the north, or gable end, the original frame of which A
was found buried under later woodwork. In the gable
above the door was a small round "oeuil de baud’ ( oeil-dem
boeuj) window,106 the frame and hinge pintles of which were
still in place. The original position of the main windows alon£
each side had not been changed, although they had been some-
what enlarged for the placement of modern sash. Pintle holes u
from the original shutters were still present.107 Altogether the *
effect was very similar to the architectural character of the old! |
Canadian churches.

The small wings to the east and west were of lightei fj
frame construction and not filled in with pierrotage, indicate I

105 Peter Kalm’s description of the old church at Baie St. Paul, on the St. Lawrence
as it existed in 1749 shows it to have had the same type of wall construction. "Th|
church is reckoned one of the most ancient in Canada . . . the walls are formed o|
timber, erected perpendicularly about two feet from each other, supporting th<
roof; between these pieces of timber, they have made the walls of the church of black
slate.” Peter Kalm, Travels Into North America (London, 1771), II: 483. Th|
early Canadian wooden churches, once common, were in general replaced with ston<
structures in the eighteenth century. Ramsay Traquair, The Old Architecture oi
Quebec (Toronto, 1947), 135.

Discussions of early French types of construction used locally may be founc
in Charles E. Peterson, Colonial St. Louis (St. Louis, 1949), 19-24, 30-39, anc
"Early Ste Genevieve and Its Architecture,” Missouri Historical Review, Vol. XXXVI*
no. 2 (Jan., 1941), 217, 218.

106 Traquair, Old Architecture of Quebec, 139. The contract for the wooder
church in St. Louis (1775) called for one of these. The "bouc” instead of "boeuf ;
seems to have been an American colloquialism.

107 Dovetailed (en queue d’hironde) shutters of the early French type may stil .
be seen on the Bequet-Ribault house, Ste Genevieve. A single example was alsc
found by the writer in the Bolduc house attic.

CHARLES E. PETERSON

337

ing that they must always have been weather boarded. They
had, in 1948, arched ceilings of board and batten which ap-
peared to be original.

While the floor framing under the church had been much
disturbed some thick old floorboards, possibly of cottonwood,
remained. There was also a board ceiling, probably replacing

French Roof Trusses

Concealed by the ceiling boards of the Church of the Holy Family are
j hese heavy trusses of characteristically French construction. They are similar
: o those found in many Canadian churches.

338

NOTES ON OLD CAHOKIA

an earlier one of the same general type.108 The roof is sup-
ported by some fine hewn French trusses with characteristic!
wind-bracing, all apparently original. To counteract the thrust
of this roof construction, the sides of the walls were held to-
gether by long wooden cross-ties. During the restoration mod-
ern metal roofing was removed and evidence was found that
the shingles had been originally hung with pegs over hori-
zontally laid poles. Some hand-smoothed nailed oak shingles!
were also found in place.109

Although Cahokia’s French architecture made a poor im-
pression on Yankee Moses Austin (he wrote that "there is;#
not a building in the Place that can be called Elegant” )11C!|
he would probably have appreciated the brick mansion of
Nicholas Jarrot, being of a more familiar type, had he come
only two years later. Jarrot, a native of France, emigrated to
the Illinois country in the 1790’s, married there and settled |
down as a substantial merchant. He had a small store in Ca
hokia, traded annually on the Upper Mississippi, dabbled in
milling, speculated in lands, held public office, and amassed <
a fortune. On February 25, 1799, Jarrot bought part of Andre
Bequet’s lot facing the Rigolet and across the street from the

108 Professor Traquair shows sections through the naves of many Canadian example!!
(where the ceiling may be circular, elliptical, or coved) and in every case the trusses,
are hidden as structural parts not suitable for display.

Flagg’s description of the old church at Kaskaskia is interesting in its entirety:
"It is a huge old pile, extremely awkward and ungainly, with its projecting eaves
its walls of hewn timber perpendicularly planted, and the interstices stuffed wit!
mortar, with its quaint old-fashioned spire, and its dark storm-beaten casements. The
interior of the edifice is somewhat imposing, notwithstanding the sombre hue of it!
walls; these are rudely plastered with lime, and decorated with a few dingy paintings
The floor is of loose, rough boards, and the ceiling arched with oaken panels.’
Edmund Flagg, The Far West; or a "Tour Beyond the Mountains , reprinted Reuber
Gold Thwaites, ed., Early Western Travels (Cleveland, 1906), XXVII: 62.

109 The writer some years ago examined an original shingle from the Menarc
house at Kaskaskia, built about 1800. It was 17 inches long, 3 Vi inches wide, and V;
inch thick at the butt. The shingle was hand-smoothed, the butt was beveled, anc
the weather surface painted with an iron oxide paint. The species of wood was no
identified.

110 Am. Hist. Rev., Apr., 1900, p. 534. He called them badly built and out oi
repair.

CHARLES E. PETERSON

339

lew church.111 It is believed that the house was built soon after-
ward, but nothing is known of the project in work. The cen-
ral-hall with stairway, the Flemish bond front, and the wood-
work, of which a surprising amount remains, are thoroughly
\nglo- American in character and quite unrelated to the wood-
en French houses of the village.112 It was the mansion of the
oeriod.

The three buildings described above were unusual in
heir time. About the less important houses of eighteenth-cen-
ury Cahokia, few particulars are known. We must assume
hat they were similar to those of the neighboring villages,
oncerning which we possess a great deal of archival infor-
nation in the form of building contracts, descriptions in sales,
rtc. Documents describing buildings are surprisingly rare for
Lahokia. Judge Sidney Breese, who came to the Illinois coun-
ty in 1818, left a description of the villages of the East Bank,
nd it seems to apply well enough to Cahokia:

The houses occupying their village lots were built in a very simple and
Inpretending style of architecture. Small timbers which the "commons”
J applied, roughly hewed and placed upright in the ground a few inches
part, formed the body,113 the interstices being filled with sticks, pieces of

111 The lot was described as "Une emplacement d’ environ 60 pieds de profondeur
itue au village de Cahos joignant a L Est a l’ emplacement du dit vendeur au nord
une Grande Rue de traverse qui separe le dit emplacement d’avec celui de acquereur,

p Couchant a une Rue de traverse qui separe de dit emplacement d’avec celui appar-
rnent a I’Eglise de Cahokia et au sud a celui de Francois Grondine.” St. Clair County
ecords, Book of Deeds B, 253.

112 According to one source, the house was completed in 1805. "It rests on
mbers of black walnut with about two feet face, imbedded several feet under ground,
hese timbers rest on beds of charcoal, which are separated from the earth beneath
y a layer of sand and gravel . . . The earthquake of 1811 only shook down two of
ie chimneys, and produced two small seams in the rear wall.” Brink, McDonough,

Clair County, 329-

Margaret E. Babb, "The Mansion House of Cahokia and Its Builder — Nicholas
irrot,” Transactions of the Illinois State Historical Society for the Year 1924
Springfield, 1924), 78-92, offers a life of Jarrott, mostly from secondary sources,
ith little about the design and construction of the house. Guy Study, "Oliver Parks
estores the Jarrot Mansion at Cahokia,” Journal of the Illinois State Historical
jciety, Vol. XXXVIII, no. 3 (Sept., 1945), 351-53, describes the rebuilding of the
>of and cornice and repairs made to the building at that time.

113 The posts in the ground were generally of cedar or mulberry. John Reynolds,
'oneer History of Illinois (Belleville, 1850), 50. The three remaining houses of
is type at Ste Genevieve have cedar posts. D’Artaguiette (1723) wrote that "the
ood of the mulberry tree lasts for thirty years in the ground, without rotting.”
ewton D. Mereness, Travels in the American Colonies (New York, 1916), 74.

NOTES ON OLD CAHOKIA

340

stone and mud,114 neatly whitewashed within and without,115 with low eave
and pointed roofs, covered with thatch,135 or with shingles fastened b] J
wooden pins.117 Those of the wealthier class were of strong, well-hewei I
frames, in the same peculiar, though more finished style, or of rough lime!
stone, with which the country abounded.

Galleries, or porches as they were called, protected them on every sidj I
from the sun and storms,118 while the apartments within were large, airj J
and convenient, with little furniture, but with well-scoured or neatly-waxei a,
floors.119

The first type referred to by Breese was the commones
kind of house construction in the Illinois country villages. Ill ;
precise terms it was the palisadoed house (called in that da
rrpoteaux en terre,” literally "posts in ground”) where tb
walls were built of timbers planted upright in the ground.1 ; I
These are particularly subject to rot, and for that reason non
remain on the bottoms east of the Mississippi.121 Two example
described in the Cahokia records were the Brisson and Tha
bault houses. The house of Alexis Brisson, who had to flee tb
country after beating up the widow Hanson, was a palisadoe<

114 According to Reynolds the filling was a "mortar made of common clay anj I
cut straw.” Pioneer History, 50. This was called bousillage. The other type c I
filling used, a mixture of broken limestone and lime was called pierrotage.

115 Most of the houses seem to have been plastered, inside and out, before white ■:
washing — which led many Easterners to mistake them for stone houses. Whitewash I
was known as "eau de chaux” or "lait de chaux” and was made from the local limijjl
stone.

116 Thatch, according to Reynolds, was "generally of straw, or long grass cut i| I
the prairie.” It "looked well and lasted longer than shingles.” Pioneer History, p( N
At Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin, the use of thatch continued by the French for som! I
time and it was necessary to pass a fire ordinance against it in 1822.

117 Shingles (bardeaux) , sawn or split, were used by the French in America froi |
an early date. Charlevoix, writing from Canada in 1720, said "everything here I
covered with shingles.” Shingles hung by pegs called "bardeaux a chevillel I
In other cases they were nailed down with shingle nails " cloux a bardeaux.” Reynold! b
wrote that shingles were mainly of white oak, and, when the roof was covered wit) I
pegged shingles the bottom course was nailed down. Pioneer History, 50.

118 The best houses were "surrounded with spacious galleries; some only o I
one or two sides, while the poorer class are obliged to put up with naked walls, an| l
a poor habitation.” Henry Marie Brackenridge, Views of Louisiana ( Pittsburglj I
1814), 119.

119 Sidney Breese, The Early History of Illinois (Chicago, 1884), 197.

120 Judge Symmes wrote of these houses in Vincennes, "the logs do not la jj
horizontal as the Americans build, but stand erect with one end set well in the groun< I
& the upper end Spiked to or framed into a plate which runs horrizontally round th
house.” Symmes to Robert Morris, Vincennes, June 22, 1790. Beverly W. Boni
Jr., ed.. The Correspondence of John Cleves Symmes (New York, 1926) 288.

121 Three of these interesting houses still remain in Ste Genevieve, Missouri- I
the Bequet-Ribault, the Ammoreaux, and the St. Gemme Beauvais houses.

CHARLES E. PETERSON

341

house about twenty-eight feet by forty-eight feet in size, with
a galerie all around, and board floors and ceilings, the whole
disposed in several rooms.122 The house of the widow Thabault
was smaller, sixteen feet by twenty feet, covered with shingles
and appraised at 300 livres ,123

The second type with "strong, well-hewed frames” was
called by the French the "poteaux sur sole ” house, literally
"posts on sill” house. These were usually built on a stone
foundation which kept the wooden frame above the damp soil.
'The sole surviving example at Cahokia is the Lapance-Saucier
house or Old Courthouse.124 Of the stone masonry house, there
■were at least two examples — the large presbytere almost fin-
ished by Forget du Verger in 1763 — and another under con-
struction at Prairie du Pont by Antoine Girardin in 1790. 125
These have been missing for years.

The house of horizontal logs (called the "mats on de
pieces sur pieces”), while familiar in Canada and the Anglo-
American colonies, did not appear commonly in the Illinois
'country until the end of the eighteenth century. Three Cahokia
examples mentioned in the records are the house sold by
(Gabriel Cerre to LaPierre in 1781, 126 the headquarters of the
Michilimackinac Company in 1788, 127 and the house sold by
Nicolas Turgeon to Auguste Trottier in 1798.128

122 Perrin Collection, inventory dated Aug. 7, 1788. There was also a thatched
Ebarn, about 30 by 50 feet of the same construction, as well as a horse mill and orchard.

123 Perrin Collection, Record of sale June 8, 1789- Part of the same property
was a barn of walnut timber 40 feet long and appraised at 250 livres.

124 The Droitz house, demolished some years ago, was an example of this type,
■is was the small house of Mrs. Lucher on the present lot of the new brick school-
iouse, torn down in the memory of the writer. Good examples still standing are
he Pierre Menard house at Kaskaskia, the Bolduc and Guibourd houses at Ste

i Genevieve, and the Lamarque house at Old Mines.

125 Carter, Territorial Papers. II: 266. This house was built on a lot 300 feet
■quare which also contained a water mill.

126 Covered with shingles, had board floor and ceiling and a double chimney,
iize of lot, 130 by 176 feet. Consideration 600 livres in deer hides or beaver skins.
VlcDermott, Old Cahokia, 113, 114.

127 About 20 by 40 feet including a wood-lined well ( puits de hois), slave
quarters, and a stable. The first bid at the auction was announced in advance as 500
ivres. Perrin Collection, Jan. 14, 1788.

128 This was 20 by 25 feet, board floor and ceiling, galerie all around, together
vith barn, 25 by 50 feet, and a court and garden. Kaskaskia French and English
)eed Record A, 160.

342

NOTES ON OLD CAHOKIA

The windows of these houses were of the hinged casement
type and "had generally some glass in them.” Doors were of
"plain batton work, out of walnut mostly.” Floors were main-
ly of split boards, or puncheons, because of the local sawmills
failed to produce in quantity.129 Henry Marie Brackenridge,
who lived across the river and who was one of the most in-
telligent and literate observers of the early days, learned that
the style of the houses was "copied after the fashion of the;
West Indies.” In this he was referring to the low-lying char-
acter of the house with the wide porch roofs.130 To top off
the whole, a cross of wood was often placed on the comb of
the ridge pole.131

The grounds about these houses had their own peculiar
form of fencing. As in the other Illinois country villages, they
were regularly enclosed with palisadoes on the boundary
lines. John Reynolds makes reference to this custom:

Lots in ancient times were enclosed by cedar posts or picketts planted!
about two feet in the ground and about five feet above. These pickets werej
placed touching each other, so that a tight and safe fence was made aroundjj
each proprietor’s lot. The upper ends of the pickets were sharpened, so
it was rather difficult to get over the fence. A neat gate was generally made!
in the fence, opposite to the door of the house, and the whole concern was;
generally kept clean and neat; so that their residences had the air of cleanli-
ness and comfort.132

A large corner wall section of the Chatillon log house, demolished in 1946,1
and believed to have been one of the oldest buildings in Prairie du Pont, is pre-|
served in the architectural collection of the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial,
St. Louis.

129 Reynolds, Pioneer History, 50.

130 H. M. Brackenridge, Views of Louisiana, 119. The Illinois country house
basically had the mass of the Canadian house — one story high, floor level near the!
ground and a steep, hipped pavilion roof — with a West Indies or Louisiana porch
wrapped around it. See Peterson, "Early Ste Genevieve," Mo. Hist. Ren., Jan., 1941,
p. 227. Reynolds noted that these houses had "no gable ends perpendicular.” Of
examples measured at Ste Genevieve, the end slope seems to have generally been
about 70 degrees.

131 Reynolds, Pioneer History, 50. I

132 Reynolds, Pioneer History, 51. "An Act regulating the Enclosures of
Grounds” passed by the territorial legislature in 1791 required that walls and wooden
fences be at least AVi feet high and palisadoes not more than 3 inches apart. Theodore
Calvin Pease, Laws of the Northwest Territory.

Brackenridge’ s descriptions of the enclosures of Ste Genevieve village lots is
interesting in this connection: "The yard was enclosed with cedar pickets, eight or
ten inches in diameter, and six feet high, sharpened at the tops, in the manner of a

CHARLES E. PETERSON

343

The bams of Cahokia were often larger than the houses,
n some cases they were built in the village and enclosed with
he houses and other outbuildings. In others they were placed
>n the outskirts open to the commons. These barns, according
o Reynolds, "were made of large cedar posts, put in the ground
ome two feet, and set apart four or five feet — the space be-
tween the posts was filled up with puncheons put in grooves
jn the posts, and the whole covered with a thatched roof.’’133
J. F. Snyder remembered that as late as the period 1839-
844 "there were quite a number of very neat, and some ele-
gant. residences in Cahokia, surrounded by fine, well-kept
gardens, fruit orchards, abundant flowers, and all the domestic
onveniences of that day.”134 In the latter year the greatest
'Mississippi River flood in history reached into the village. To
hose buildings which were not actually carried away, the
yorst damage, outside of a general soaking, would have been
he melting of the mud in which much of the stone chimneys
/ere laid and with which the frame walls were often filled.
4me and neglect have since added their toll. What little is
eft is certainly worthy of the most zealous measures for pre-
^rvation.

ilockade fort. . . . The substantial and permanent character of these enclosures, is in
jngular contrast with the slight and temporary fences and palings of the Americans.”
enry Marie Brackenridge, Recollections of Persons and Places in the West (Phila-
dphia, 1834), 24. At no time was Cahokia ever protected by a line of fortifications.

133 John Reynolds, My Own Times (Belleville, 111., 1855), 90. This seems
be what contemporary documents refer to as poteaux canellees construction. It

j n still be seen in some old barns of French Canada.

134 J. F. Snyder, The Old French Towns of Illinois in 1839,” Journal of the
- inois State Historical Society, Vol. XXXVI, no. 4 (Dec., 1943), 365-67.

Until two years ago a charming little classic Revival temple stood just across
e street wrest of the old church. This was built in 1838 by Father John Francis
-gis Loisel. After Loisel’s death in 1845 it was used alternately for a school and
priest’s home. Beuckman, Diocese of Belleville, 9. Before its unfortunate demoli-
m this building was recorded by the Historic American Buildings Survey.

WHEN WERE THE DEBATES FIRST PUBLISHED?

One of the common "rare books”
which every collector owns, and
never reads, is entitled Political De-
bates Between Hon. Abraham Lin-
coln and Lion. Stephen A. Douglas.
The book has more than antiquarian
interest, for its publication was an
element in the election of Abraham
Lincoln. Its date of publication has
been disputed — one authority main-
taining that "in the absence of proof
to the contrary it would appear that
but a few, if any, copies of the De-
bates were sold before the nomina-
tion.”1 This is important, for if the
volume was unavailable it had no
influence in Lincoln’s nomination.
Therefore, the portion of a contem-
porary newspaper reproduced on the
opposite page becomes historically
significant, and it certainly refutes the
allegation that the debates had little

or no circulation prior to May ij
I860, when Lincoln was nominate!!

The Lincoln-Douglas debates tw[ j
years before Lincoln’s nomination ai
usually conceded to have been tl ){
beginning of Lincoln’s sure and rapi
rise to the Presidency. They ga^
him a national reputation, and h
statements in 1858 became his plai i
form during the campaign of 1861 j
Lincoln’s political backers realize! I
the importance of publishing hi I
principles some time prior to the cor i
vention in May, I860, which nom a
nated the Rail Splitter. Lincoln hin i
self seems to have believed that tl fl
publication would help his nomin;l
tion, but as has been said, there h; 1
been some question as to whetmi
such early publication occurred.

We know definitely that the pul .?
lishers, Follett, Foster and Compan

1 Ernest J. Wessen, "Debates of Lincoln and Douglas,” The Papers of the Bibli
graphical Society of America, Vol. XL (Second Quarter, 1946), 102.

B. W. GRAY’S

ONE_PRIC|

Really CheapSton

TCST RECEIVED, and mnr w
*J ba&4 & large stock of

Staple ami Fane? Bry €**|* i.

The stock of spring and mmm&mJf

nUrdy new, having he®

he last few weeks*, and inelnd^ gg^^^

styles*. The subscriber j®

cry large assortment of l

Boots, Shoes, Slippers,^

’f all qualities, including eteryt^g ^ V
ine.fom a Coarse Brogau 'to
Kid Slipper.

JESS and BOY’S BATS Hlttfj

f ail kinds, and latest styles.

We live by our motto," which - lm mm
universal satisfaction—

^ROFTIB

ONLY ONE PRICE!

My goods mostly eotne direct ttm £*
r*>anoLet«r<-r<*. in the original i**±*mf
. onseqtiently I save one jwofil ' .

Country dealers will find it f© ikm m%,
j st to call, m wo can and will

adersell Chieaga anil St,

I MSS Remember Ike Sign, of ike 18*#^
,'cst rude of the Court House 8mu%Wm
■ ‘gton, ill. R W, C!to,

[ Bloomington, April 25. wfiflyt

the weekly globe,

{otdttinb fltemtg IntdKgenct ;

fHURBBAY, ABRIL 26, 18601

. Fj***n«» Trains Pais LnxiKeTuic,

«J the ST L, A, i ft EAlLitUAD,

laprtss Mail Night Ekjw-em
g*atg a, 2:00, P. ML j Going 8,, 2:10 A. M.
©ring N»,fc4& P. M; j Going N., l:2f? P. ML

fern Sam— A full «i of Felton’s outline
Map*? calculated to be used in teaching local
The Map are new and of the
best quality. Apply at this office. if

W* neglected, m our Iasi laws*, to tender
mr thanks to that sprightly little Miss, who
presented us with a very fine cake, a few
days since. It was a delicious treat

Come ay Last. -—That mammoth show so
favorably know a in both the old and the
new worlds, has left an appointment to
meet the people of L^xmgton on- the 7th day j
of May, I860, on toe Public Square.

-KuerHAN-T.* — Take a peep at him ! Oh, no j
4ontl™*-he h net there yet, but ho will be j
on hand «oo». Grait’s advertisement ap- !
pears in our columns to-day. Head It, and !
If you doubt that Gray sells cheap goods go
and see biui| Remember the sign of toe
Elephant, west side eemrt boas# square,
Bloomington/ Illinois, .

I Da, Hoans, clerk of McLean county Court
will accept <lir thanks for a copy of the De-
bates betweo^'Dcmglas and Lincoln, In tin*
campaign of 1S58, I t in a valuable work,—
cMkriyiag the principles of each of the two
great champions of the north-west, m each
a manner to furnish a eonrenient and

ytfttftbie book of t etetonem

Arnowtoj..— Tliew are a tow of the vobbc.

Evidence of Early Publication of the Debates

This clipping is from Globe of Lexington, Illinois, dated

pril 26, I860 — more than three weeks before Lincoln was nominated for
e Presidency. The fifth paragraph in the right-hand column acknowledges
ceipt of the Lincoln-Douglas Debates book. The Journal is indebted to
rs. Elmer T. Claggett, Lexington librarian, for a photostat of this paper.

346

LINCOLNIANA

of Columbus, Ohio, had the manu-
script long before the May conven-
tion for a letter from Lincoln dated
December 19, 1859, states that the
copy was being sent them by express.
We also have a statement from the
publishers in the middle of the sum-
mer of I860 that the books appeared
"early in March.” Furthermore, the
Ohio State Journal, a paper in Follett,
Foster’s home town, announced the
Debates to be "now published” and
for sale on March 20, I860. In May
the publishers announced that the
book was appearing in a fourth edi-
tion. All of the above would seem
to be very good evidence for believ-
ing that the book appeared well in
advance of Lincoln’s nomination on
May 18 — but there is another side
to the story.

It has been pointed out that the
Ohio State Journal announcement is
not conclusive evidence of fact. On
February 25, I860, the Chicago Press
and Tribune made a similar state-
ment alleging that the Debates "have
just been published.” Yet an adver-
tisement in the same paper offers to
take prepublication orders for the
book due in March. Obviously, then,
an announcement in the paper that
the work was "now published” can-
not always be relied upon. The fur-
ther statement of the publishers’ that
a fourth edition was published in
May has been dismissed also as
"trade puffery” to make the volume
appear popular.

Another statement of the publish-

ers’ that the work appeared "early ij
March” has been argued away alscj
The keystone to this last disputatio:
is Lincoln’s rival, Stephen A. Dou£
las. The Little Giant, as he wa
called, did not protest publication q
the Debates until June 9, I860. Ha1
the book appeared much earlier, s
this argument goes, Douglas woul:
surely have complained earlier. Afte
lie did complain the publishers woul:
certainly gain a point and expos,1
Douglas to further criticism by push
ing back the date of publication int
March and thus make Douglas urj
duly tardy. Such a line of argij
ment is extremely tenuous but it |
strengthened by the negative evj
dence that copies of the Debates d!
not seem to have been used again:!
Douglas in Charleston during th
Democratic convention in April.

The entire argument against earlj
publication is ingenious, to say tb
least, but as the circumstantial evj
dence accumulates it begins to a{:
pear more and more convincing. Fc|
this reason the copy of the newspape
reproduced herewith holds extraord
nary interest. Regardless of the fa<
that none of the big city newspape.
contains unimpeachable evidence coij
cerning the date of the first appeaj
ance of the Debates in March (j
April, it can no longer be assumej
that the book had not been publisher
Certainly one copy had reached tlj
little town of Lexington almost j
month before Lincoln’s nomination ij
Chicago. Therefore, the statements (

LINCOLNIANA

347

the publishers of the Debates which
have been discounted as "puffery”
5eem now to deserve more considera-
tion than they have always received.
Moreover, it also seems reasonably
certain that the Debates were a part
of the campaign literature for Lin-
zoln’s nomination, and not exclusively
i publication for the presidential race
afterwards.

The Dr. William C. Hobbs re-
ferred to in the Lexington Globe was
|i man of parts. For four years he
; aught school in Bloomington, em-
phasizing always the importance of
ocial graces. While other citizens
pressed in blue jeans and linsey-
woolsey Dr. Hobbs wore broadcloth,

2 James S. Ewing, "A Citizen of No Mean City,” Transactions of the McLean
'sunty Historical Society, Vol. II (Bloomington, 111., 1903), 550.

a silk hat, and immaculate linen. In
Bloomington he became the sole au-
thority upon every social question.
A wedding, we are told, was hardly
considered valid unless he planned
the details and then gave his presence
to the occasion. Prior to Lincoln’s
nomination he is said to have op-
posed the Rail Splitter on account
of his lack of the courtly style and dig-
nity requisite for high office. Dr.
Hobbs never married, but devoted his
life and purse to worthy cultural ob-
jectives. He died February 10, 1861,
leaving, according to the record, "no
enemies, a good many debts, and
twenty-seven satin vests.”2

JAY MONAGHAN.

FIRE MARKS IN ILLINOIS

Have you ever noticed the small
metal plates above the doors of some
of the older houses in southern Illi-
nois or in the towns along the Ohio
or Mississippi rivers? They are from
five to nine inches wide, two to five
inches high, and are usually rectang-
ular, although some are rounded and
others are diamond-shaped. Some-
times they will contain several words
in raised lettering but on many
the legend is simply "Forest City,”
"Phenix,” "Freeport,” "German,”
"American,” "Aetna,” or "Home,
New York.” These are the "Fire
Marks” of the early fire insurance
companies, and their presence indi-
cates that a house is more than three
quarters of a century old because they
were discontinued around 1870.

The origin and use of these Fire
Marks makes an interesting story
which is told in a booklet entitled
American Fire Marks , published in

1933 by the Insurance Company o|
North America. Shortly after 1680
according to this booklet, the firs1
fire fighting organization was forme<j
in London by the Fire Office, as the
first fire insurance company wa
known. It was created, of courses
to protect property insured by th
Office, and in order that its me:
might distinguish insured from un
insured buildings the use of the Fir
Mark was adopted. The first one wa
a lead plate in the form of a phoenix
rising from the flames, and it wa
nailed up in a prominent place, or :
of the reach of pilferers, on the fronj
of all buildings insured by the Offic<
When other companies entered th
insurance field they organized the
own fire fighters and had their ow
Fire Marks. All brigades would re
spond to all fire alarms but whe
they arrived only the one whose Fir
Mark was on the building would g

348

HISTORICAL NOTES

349

j work putting out the blaze. The
thers would either go home or stand
round and kibitz.

All of London’s early Fire Marks
ere made of lead, brilliantly painted,
nd usually with the policy number
; ramped on them. Since the amount
f a policy rarely exceeded 1,500
ounds sterling it was not uncommon
)r a building to be insured by half
! dozen companies and to display as
liany Fire Marks. This trend finally
^suited in a unification of the city’s
|re brigades in 1833 and then, in
1 866, this company became the
Metropolitan Fire Brigade of Lon-
bn.”

In America bucket brigades were
i use as early as 1696, and in 1735
enjamin Franklin and several other
jhiladelphians formed the first fire
rigade which, as the Union Fire

Company, continued for more than
eighty years. By 1752 there were
six companies in Philadelphia, with
a total membership of 225 men who
used eight engines, 1,055 buckets, and
thirty-six ladders. These companies
were organized simply to fight fires
and no Fire Marks were used. But
in 1752 the first fire insurance com-
pany was formed. It was the Phila-
delphia Contributorship for the In-
surance of Houses from Loss by Fire,
and Franklin was also one of its lead-
ing organizers. Soon after it was
formed the company placed an order
for Fire Marks. Others companies
came later and they also had their
Marks. However, these firms did not
form their own fire brigades but re-
lied on the fire companies already in
existence. Thus the American Fire
Mark had a different use from those

Fire Mark of a Springfield Company

This plate, four by seven inches in size, was found on the one-and-a-half
>ry brick home of C. H. Rippelmeyer at Waterloo, Illinois. The Sangamo
mpany ceased doing business between 1869 and 1894.

350

HISTORICAL NOTES

in London: it was intended to dis-
courage malicious arson by showing
that the owner would not suffer a loss
from the fire, and it guaranteed that
the fire brigade would be rewarded
for its efforts in extinguishing a blaze.

Great rivalry was stirred up among
the volunteer fire companies by the
higher and more certain compensa-
tion offered by the insurance com-
panies. The first one at the scene of
the blaze had the right of way and
the others could not share in the
honors or rewards unless they were
asked for aid. Usually the first ar-
rival would rather lose to the fire
than part with any of the expected

compensation. In the case of a tit
there would likely be fisticuffs anql
bloody noses — while the fire burned!
away. However, if the house bon
no Fire Mark all the brigades turnec i
their backs and let it burn.

In 1858, Chicago started a paic 1
fire department and about that tim< l
the old Fire Marks began to lose thei: 1
significance. However, a number o i
companies continued to issue tir [
plates bearing their trade marks tel
advertise their service in rural areas 1

In 1870, just before Fire MarkJI
became obsolete, there were 113 finjl
insurance firms operating in Illinoisjl

From a Jersey County Store

The Sterling firm was one of the "companies . . . organized under specia I
charters, . . . [which] were consigned to the tomb of the 'Capulets’ beford I
supervision of insurance companies was required by the law of this State,] I
according to the report of the Illinois state insurance department of March 1 fl
1894. This mark is from a three-room frame store owned by WheatoiB
Brothers at Fieldon, Illinois. It is seven and a half inches wide and fou .l
and a half inches high.

HISTORICAL NOTES

351

A HIG COMPANY WITH A HIG MARK

One of the largest in the collection of Insuranceman Milton Babcock,
is Fire Mark measures eight and one-quarter by four and one-half inches,
was issued by an Alton, Illinois, company which at one time had assets
$318,269, or more than the average for firms of its period. This com-
lmy also had ceased doing business by 1894. The Mark was taken from
e one-and-a-half story brick home of John Ries at Columbia, Illinois.

venty-eight were Illinois companies
id of these sixteen were located in
ficago, three in Freeport, two each
Rockford and Alton, and one each
Springfield, Bloomington, Beards -
wn, Quincy, and Aurora. Today
>c one of these Illinois companies
in existence — they either failed,
ised operating, or were absorbed
larger companies, usually in the
.st.

The Fire Marks of a number of
ese companies can be seen occa-
>nally on the old houses in many
inois towns. The writer is an in-

surance field man and has made a
hobby of collecting Fire Marks. He
has begged and bought them from
householders in all parts of the state.
Many of the houses had interesting
histories and Lincoln is said to have
stopped at some of them.

This collection of thirty-three Illi-
nois Fire Marks is on display at the
Illinois State Historical Library. Each
is identified with the location and
description of the house from which
it was taken.

MILTON BABCOCK,

Lovington, Illinois.

THE MONKS OF MONKS’ MOUND

During the French Revolution a community of monks of the order ol
La Trappe, emigrated from a place of the same name near Paris, into the
Grugeres Alps, from whence they sent a colony to Amsterdam, who finding
that the French motto of "Liberty, Equality and Fraternity,” extended ever!1
there, and threatened the Country with the doctrines of Atheism, then per
vading in France, they determined on seeking an asylum in the United States
Arriving in Baltimore after a tedious voyage, much reduced by starvation
they were hospitably entertained by Archbishop Carroll and Dr. Chatard, whc
administered to them everything necessary to their comfort. They soughi
for a while a resting place in Pennsylvania, from whence they went to Ken-
tucky and located on a farm, and after a short residence there, and losing
their stock and crops by a freshet, they removed to Florisant, near St. Louis i
where they remained about eighteen months, and finally located at the!
mounds, on the American bottom, in Illinois, in 1807.

A large tract of land was donated to them, and they soon had nearl)
one hundred acres inclosed and cultivated, and well stocked, with horses andj
cattle. They erected a horse-mill, and several log cabins for dwellings anc ]
work shops, and also, a church of logs. Of their buildings there is now
scarcely a vestige remaining. Their design was, to educate youth, in all tha
branches of Literature, Agriculture, and the Mechanic Arts, on gratuitous
terms. A number of pupils from the neighboring towns resorted to then!;
for instruction, some of whom, are now among the most accomplished mer j
chants and artizans, in the western country.

The first discovery of coal in the bluffs, was made by these monks ir
one of the mines from which St. Louis is in a great part supplied. Theii

352

353

J. C. Wild’s drawing for The Valley of the Mississippi, published in 1841.

354

ILLINOIS SCRAPBOOK

blacksmiths complained of a want of proper fuel, and on their being ir
formed that the earth, at the root of a tree, which was struck by lightning
was burning, they went to the spot, and on digging a little below the surfacJ
discovered a vein of coal.

The number, that originally came to this country, consisted of six monk
and seven lay-brothers, under the paternal guidance of the Rev. Urban Guilie'
it was however increased by additions from France and from different pari
of the United States to thirty-six persons in all. Every thing seemed prospe;
ous and happy about them, when suddenly they were assailed with a mali^
nant fever, which carried off three of their number in one night. The cour
try around them continuing unhealthy, in 1816 those remaining broke u
the establishment, re-conveyed the land to Mr. Jarrot, the donator, and r<
turned to France.

During their residence at the mounds, the monks pursued the sair
system of austerity instituted at La Trappe, by John le Bouthillier de Rancj i
the rigid Reformer of the Cistercian order. No one was ever allowed t
speak to another, or to a stranger, except in cases of absolute necessity
neither could he address the superior, without first asking his permission, ‘q
a sign, and receiving his assent. They were allowed to receive no lette
or news from the world, and were compelled to obey the least sign mac) J
even by the lowest lay-brother in the community, although by doing s|
they might spoil whatever they were at the time engaged in. Their dre:|
consistend entirely of woollen; they eat no flesh, and had but two meals a-da;
their dinner was of soup of turnips, carrots and other vegetables, with n
seasoning but salt, and their supper, of two ounces of bread with watei »
They slept in their clothing upon boards, with blocks of wood for pillow
but in winter were allowed any quantity of covering they desired. Whej {
a stranger visited them, he was received with the utmost kindness by the! |
guest-master, his wants attended to, and every thing freely shown and e:l|
plained to him, and whenever he passed one of the monks, the latter bowel
humbly to him, but without looking at him. They labored all day in tf i
fields or in their work shops in the most profound silence, the injuncticjj
of which was removed, only from the one appointed to receive visitors, aril
those engaged in imparting instruction.

When one of them was taken ill, the rigor of their discipline was eij|
tirely relaxed towards him, and every attention and comfort bestowed upq j,
him, and if he was about to die, when in his last agonies, he was place
upon a board, on which the superior had previously made the sign of
cross, with ashes, and the rest gathered around him to console and pray f<
him. The dead were wrapt in their ordinary habit and buried without

ILLINOIS SCRAPBOOK

355

coffin in the field adjoining their residence. As soon as one was buried, a
new grave was opened by his side, to be ready for the next who might need
jit. About twenty -five years have elapsed since these austere fathers aban-
doned the mounds, but the older inhabitants of the neighborhood, still speak
of their many acts of kindness and charity, and cherish their memories with
:he most filial affection.

J. C. wild, The Valley of the Missis-
sippi (St. Louis, 1841), 54-56.

BIG-THUNDER AND THE SURGEON

A curious fact was mentioned to me, as having occurred in this prairie
between Galena and Racine, but over in the region of the Rock river, about
?L2 miles distant from that stream, and it was corroborated by so many per-
sons who had passed by the spot on which it occurred, that I have no doubt
_)f its tmth. It appears that an Indian Chief of the Chippeways, named Big-
Thunder, being in the region of the Rock river, and aware of his approach -
ng death, from old age, as well as disease, selected a small swelling emi-
nence in the prairie, on which he desired to be placed after his death, accord -
ng to the custom of the tribe of which he was the head.

This request was soon after complied with, the warrior being dressed,
lifter his death, in his best robes and skins, his face painted, and his hair done
ip as if going forth on a war-expedition; his eagle’s feathers in his head,
lis collar of the claws of the grisly bear around his neck, the scalps he had
aken in battle hanging from his girdle, his quiver of arrows at his back, and
lis bow in one hand, and tomahawk in the other. Thus attired, the old
piief was seated in a chair, and placed on the eminence selected by himself,
fioking over the prairie. To protect his dead body, however, from being
arried off and devoured by the wolves, the tribe erected around him a
lltockade, sufficiently high to keep them off, without preventing the body
jrom being seen, or interrupting the view from the eminence. The ex-
treme dryness of the atmosphere prevented putrefaction; and the body there -
ore remained, shrivelled and dried up by the sun and wind, but the form
nd features were distinctly preserved.

Some months after the body of this Chief was placed in the position
[ escribed, some of the tribe passing by were horror-stricken at finding that
le headless trunk of their venerated Chief alone remained, the head having
een cut off at the neck by some sharp instrument, and removed. The
'hole tribe were inflamed with indignation at this outrage, and thought it
lust have been some of their Indian enemies who had done the deed. But

356

ILLINOIS SCRAPBOOK

it was subsequently ascertained that it was the work of a white man, a sui
geon, whose passion for phrenology overcame his scruples at mangling th;
dead and insulting the living, and who had gone, like a robber, in the dea
of the night, to commit this sacrilegeous violation of rights which even th
savage respects. Fortunately for himself, the fact became known first tj
his friends, who were enabled to conceal it long enough to allow of his re
moval, or probably summary vengeance would have been executed by th
Indians on his own person.

J. S. Buckingham, The Eastern and Western I
States of America (London, 1842), 111:289-91.

SINGULAR SIEGE AT KASKASKIA

It was in this settlement, [on the east side of the Kaskaskia River, no 1
far from the old town of Kaskaskia] in the early part of the spring of 1781
that a most singular battle and siege occurred. David Pagon, one of Clark; I
men, had made a house two miles from Kaskaskia, and had finished it in :
strong and substantial manner, so as to withstand an Indian attack. Le^l
Teel and James Curry, also two of Clark’s soldiers, had been out hunting o; I
the east side of the river and had encamped in this house for the night. Th: 1
door of the house had three bars across it, to secure it against Indian assaull I
and in the door was a hole cut for the cat to go in and out.

Toward day, Curry informed Teel that there were Indians about thjfl
house and that they must fix up their guns for defence. Teel was rathejl
inclined to open the door and give up as prisoners, while Curry would nci 1
listen to it at all. Teel went to the door to either open it or to make disl
coveries and stood with his foot near the cat hole. The Indians outsidj |
stuck a spear thro his foot and fastened him to the floor. The Indians, iil
their war expeditions, always carry spears with them. By a kind of instinc| I
Teel put his hand to the spear to draw it out of his foot and other spear ■
were stuck in his hand. They cut and mangled his hand in a shocking man 1
ner; so that he was not only nailed to the floor of the house, but his handij
were rendered useless.

It was ascertained afterward that it was the Piankeshaw Indians an<j
there were sixteen in the band. Curry was an extraordinary man; brave tj
desperation and inured to broil and feats of battle until he was always coc
and prepared. He jumped up in the loft of the house to drive the enem;
off before Teel would open the door and by a small crevice in the roof, b
put his gun out and shot into the crowd of Indians. He shot three time
with great rapidity, for fear Teel would open the door. It was disco vere<

ILLINOIS SCRAPBOOK

357

afterward from the Indians that Curry had killed three warriors. He then
got down to see what Teel was about and found him transfixed to the floor,
as above stated. He then got up again in the loft and tumbled the whole
roof, weight-poles and all, down on the Indians standing at the door with
spears in their hands. It will be recollected that in olden times the roofs
of cabins were made with weight-poles on the boards, to keep them down.
The pioneers used no nails as they do at this day.

The roof falling on the enemy killed the chief and the others ran off.
Day was breaking, which assisted also to disperse the Indians. Curry took
[both guns and made Teel walk altho he was almost exhausted on account of
:the loss of blood. They had a hill to walk up at the start, which fatigued
jTeel and he gave out before they reached Kaskaskia altho they had two
[miles to travel. Curry left Teel and went to Kaskaskia for help and at last
jjsaved himself and comrade from death.

To my knowledge, the houses in times of Indian wars were fixed so
the roofs could be thrown down on the enemy and sometimes large round
limbers were laid on the tops of the houses on purpose to roll off on the
Indians below.

JOHN REYNOLDS, Pioneer His-
tory of Illinois (1887), 340-41.

PRAIRIE PURGATORY TO PARADISE

While we were opposite to this mound of Mount Joliet, and within a
ew yards of its base, we were exposed to the fury of one of the most
iolent thunderstorms that we had experienced in the country. Those we
lad witnessed when ascending the mountain of Catskill, on the Hudson
iver, were grand; and several off Cape Hatteras, on the voyage from New
7ork to Charleston by sea, were fearful. The latest and loudest we had
ncountered was at Louisville, on the Ohio. But neither of these equalled,
a the loud crashes of the thunder, the intense vividness of the forked light-
ing, or the heavy deluge of descending rain, this storm on the prairie. The
bsence of all shelter occasioned us to be of course the more exposed to its
lerciless fury, and it literally raged with the force and violence of a typhoon
r a hurricane. The horses were terrified into perfect stillness; the driver
^signed his reins and quitted his seat, to hide beneath the lee of the coach;
id the passengers were all mute and grave, from a feeling approaching very
ear to horror.

The resistless blast swept by like a tornado, and there was no facing the
mpest and keeping the eyes open. Ten thousand pieces of the largest

358

ILLINOIS SCRAPBOOK

artillery all discharged at the same moment, could not have shaken the'!
atmosphere so violently, or have been more deafening, than the crashes anci
rattlings of the thunder, peal succeeding peal, in almost continuous succes
sion; while the intervals between the flashes of lightning wore the darknes:
of a total eclipse; and the rain, when the lightning glared forth again, seemecj *
like a white smoking mist or foam, chafed into collision, and scattered into
spray, by the rapidity of its almost horizontal motion. We all rejoiced mos
heartily when it began to abate, and we enjoyed the bright sunshine tha
succeeded, with a new zest; but unfortunately, the prairie, already too mois
in all its hollows or depressions, now presented the aspect of so many small i
lakes, through which it was necessary to wade with great caution to preven ?
a repetition of the detention which had before befallen us. . . .

It was midnight when we reached the last stage for our changing horse:
before we should arrive at Chicago, the distance being 12 miles; but herd j
it was thought necessary to change coaches also, and accordingly all the dis a
comfort of re-loading had to be repeated. The object of changing th<
coach was to give us a much heavier vehicle, with broad wheels like a waggon I
as the road was said to be so much wTorse between this and Chicago, than oil I
any part of the route, that a narrow wheel would sink up beyond the axle
and only very broad ones could sustain us. While this change of coaches wa; |
making, we had to wait in the bar-room of one of the most filthy and I
wretched houses we had yet seen, in which the smell of rum and tobacccj I
mingled with other powerfully disagreeable odours, was most offensive; thj 1
hideous-looking bar-keeper appeared like a man who never washed oi 1
combed, and none of whose garments had ever been changed since he had 1
first put them on; — altogether nothing could be more revolting.

To add to our discomforts, the place at which we halted, seemed to b; |
the head-quarters of the mosquito tribe; they kept our hands and handket I
chiefs in constant motion; and yet they evaded both, so as to cover the facej I
of most of the parties with large pustules from their bites. They were thil
largest and most venomous I had ever seen; and the sultriness of the nigh I I
the closeness of the place, and the filth of the room in which we were sta> I
ing, seemed to give them new vigour. I went into the open air, hoping fc 1
some relief, but met as large a legion of them without as within, and founjl
there was no escape from their tormenting attacks. One of our Wester j 1
passengers declared that in a part of the prairie from which he had com<*
they were so thick that if you held out your naked arm straight for a fe
minutes, so as to allow them to settle on it, they would be followed by sue
a cloud of others hovering round them, that if you suddenly drew in you
arm, you would perceive a clear hole left in the cloud, by the space whic

ILLINOIS SCRAPBOOK

359

the arm had occupied! But the Western people delight in these exaggerated
. figures; for in the course of the night, one of them remarked, on the com-

, parative speed of two boats on the Illinois river, that one of them would

j go faster while she was standing still, than the other with all her steam on;
and the driver, who was dissatisfied with the dulness of the lamps prepared
for our last stage of the journey, exclaimed, "Well, if we can only rig out
. two more such lamps as these, we shall be pretty near to total darkness. . .

When daylight opened upon us, we obtained a distant sight of the white

Rouses of Chicago, a long way off, on the plain; but, distant as they still

seemed, never did weary mariner hail the first opening of the harbour, into
; which he was running to escape shipwreck or storm, with more joy than did
we welcome these first tokens of our approach to a place of rest. It was past
5 sunrise before we reached the town, having been 6 hours coming the last
12 miles, and 40 hours performing the whole journey of 96 miles. But we
..found delightful quarters in the excellent hotel of the Lake House, and what
I was still better, the cordial greetings and welcome of former friends, whom
we had known at Baltimore and Washington, and we felt ourselves, there-
fore, by the contrast, in Elysium.

J. S. BUCKINGHAM, The Eastern and Western States
of America (London, 1842), 111:248-49; 250-52; 255.

A Cycle of the West. By John G. Neihardt. (The Macmillan Company j
New York, 1949. Pp. 656. $5.00.)

While John G. Neihardt has been widely acclaimed as a poet, Indiaij
historian, critic, and lecturer, he is too little identified with his native staiB
of Illinois. The publication of this one-volume collection of his five narr; I
tive poems of the West is an excellent occasion for calling attention to h| *
birth in 1881 near Sharpsburg, in Christian County. If members of tH &
Illinois State Historical Society in Taylorville, Pana, and the towns in th;| ty
area would like a suggestion, it is that they plan a way to honor this dill
tinguished son of their county in connection with the fulfillment of a tas! I
which he undertook in 1912 — when he was thirty-one years old.

As a small boy, John Neihardt went to live with his pioneering grant a
parents on the great plains of northwestern Kansas. Soon the family move*
to Wayne, Nebraska, which was even more western in its life. He worke r
his way in Nebraska Normal College, Wayne, but even so completed hiB
course at sixteen. In succession he was a farm hand, schoolteacher, boo*
keeper, beet weeder, and marble -polisher. Then his family moved to Baijl
croft, also in Nebraska, on the edge of an Omaha Indian reservation.

This change was a turning point in young Neihardt’s life. He becamj
assistant to the Indian agent and before he knew it had begun to colletj
Indian stories, tales, and songs. He began to see the exploits of discover! i
exploration, and settlement of the area west of the Missouri River as
genuine epic period. Then he dreamed out a series of heroic songs, "designe
to celebrate the great mood of courage.” The pioneering of the nineteent1,
century he found "differing in no essential from the other great epic perioc.

360

BOOK REVIEWS

361

hat marked the advance of the Indo-European peoples out of Asia and across
iurope.”

The period covered in the five-song epic cycle begins in 1822 with the
scent of General Ashley and Major Henry and their fur trappers to the
leaver country of the upper Missouri. It closes at the Battle of Wounded
inee in 1890, with which Indian resistance on the plains came to an end.
’he five songs are, in order in the chronology of the cycle: "The Song of the

’hree Friends” (1919), "The Song of Hugh Glass” (1915), "The Song of
?d Smith” ( 1941), "The Song of the Indian Wars” ( 1925), and "The Song
f the Messiah” (1935). Episodes related include such themes as the first
lamp of Americans to the Great Salt Lake, "the last great fight for the bison
astures,” and "the conquered people and the worldly end of their last great
[ream.”

By way of establishing his fitness for the task of writing these heroic
bems, this native of Illinois says in his introduction:

My maternal grandparents were covered- wagon people, and at the age
f five I was living with them in a sod house on the upper Solomon. The
Liffalo had vanished from the country only a few years before, and the signs
[ them were everywhere. I have helped, as a little boy could, in "picking
W-hips” for winter fuel. If I wrie of hot winds and grasshoppers, of
•airie fires and blizzards, of dawns and moons and sunsets and nights, of
ooding heat and thunderstorms in vast lands, I knew them early. They
ere the vital facts of my world, along with the talk of the oldtimers who
lew such fascinating things to talk about.

Looking back, he sums up:

I can see now that I grew up on the farther slope of a veritable "water-
ed of history,” the summit of which is already crossed, and in a land where
[ke old world lingered longest. It is gone, and with it, all but two or three
if the oldtimers, white and brown, whom I have known. My mind and
pst of my heart are with the young, and with the strange new world that
1 being born in agony. But something of my heart stays yonder, for in the
j tars of my s’nging about a time and a country that I loved, I note, without
fbret, that I have become an oldtimer myself!

Married since 1908 to the sculptress, Mona Martinsen, who modeled a
ngnificent head of the poet, Neihardt and his wife are the parents of a
e family. Much could be said about the cycle and its appearance finally
one stout, handsome volume. Perhaps it is enough to say that the author
this book most surely will be one of those considered for the Pulitzer Prize
poetry for 1949- Currently he is poet in residence and lecturer at the
diversity of Missouri.

Little Sharpsburg, on Illinois Highway No. 29, some twenty-three miles
i itheast of Springfield, ought to be proud of John Gneisenau Neihardt.
Collinsville. IRVING DILLIARD.

362

BOOK REVIEWS

Ozark Folksongs. Volume III: Humorous and Play -Party Songs. Collected;

and edited by Vance Randolph. (The State Historical Society of
Missouri: Columbia, 1949. Pp- 594. $3.75.)

Here is a handsome volume that will help almost any Illinois grand-
mother, or not too young mother, to relive her youthful frolics with the
children of this age, so dependent upon commercial entertainment. Play-!
party songs and their accompanying games were the young folks’ answer!
to their elders’ scruples against dancing and card games. When singing was,
the principal form of social entertainment, and music was almost always! 1
homemade, these songs "in lighter vein” provided the fun youth must have.| ,
Their appeal is just as valid today. Although the 250 songs of this volume; i
were collected in the Missouri and Arkansas Ozarks, they were familiar at (
comparable dates on the playgrounds and at the sociables of Illinois.

From Danville to Cairo, school girls played "Here Comes a Dukeil
A-ridin’ ” (No. 551) and "Round and Round the Levee” (No. 538). AH
Murphysboro newspaperman always sang his children to sleep with the dole-! fc
ful tune and surprising words of "Old Father Grimes” (No. 428). He had;
another couplet:

Young Man Grimes will be Old Man Grimes,

When Old Man Grimes is dead.

At least one family in Springfield sang:

I got a girl in Baltimore.

Wears her hair in a pompadour,

in preference to Mr. Randolph’s second line, "Street-car runs right by her|H
door” (No. 452). A girl from Anna, Illinois, taught her schoolmates theH
same Arkansas version of "Sparking on Sunday Night” (No. 468) with thejl
giggle in:

How many on the sofa,

But I do not think there’s three.

In Jackson County, Illinois, the many verses of "The Paper of Pins’] L
(No. 354) were used as a game song by the grade school girls of about 1908.1 1
with the "boys” kneeling for the "ladies’ ” final favorable answer.

Perhaps these are too personal matters, but who wouldn’t be glad tcj3
know there really is a "Tune the Old Cow Died On” (No. 411). The 1
complete dialogue of "The Arkansas Traveler,” with the squatter’s and the f
stranger’s fiddle tunes, is printed as Number 346 with a bibliographical in- 1
troduction. These headnotes for practically every song provide accurate docu-J
mentation for any reader who wishes to pursue a song through its regional ■

BOOK REVIEWS

363

ersions. Mr. Randolph has credited the contributor who furnished each
Tariant and has provided striking portrait photographs of several singers.
The tune is often given. The only lack is an alphabetical index, either of
irst lines or titles. But each user of the book can soon prepare his own.

Previous volumes of the series, on British Ballads recovered in the
)zarks and on Ballads and Songs arranged in subject groups, have been
Reviewed in this Journal (March and June, 1948). Almost annually since
l 931, Mr. Randolph has published a volume on some phase of Ozarkian
,ulture. He records dialect peculiarities just as he heard them, with the
Sympathy of an insider. The art of balladry and the playing of song-games
j> waning as the Ozark region becomes a vacation playground, therefore this
let with 600 songs in the first three volumes is invaluable to the general
Collector of Americana, as well as to the folklore specialist.
i Chicago. BARBARA BURR HUBBS.

Lincoln and His Neighbors. By Bess V. Ehrmann. (Democrat Publishing
Company: Rockport, Indiana, 1948. Pp. [44]. $1.00.)

This booklet was prepared for the Spencer County Historical Society
lid was first published in the weekly columns of the Rockport Democrat.
‘pparently the same type and cuts were used in both cases.

The booklet consists of a prologue and epilogue which set forth the
imposes of the publication, the difficulty of securing valid data, and the
riter’s philosophy. Mrs. Ehrmann contends that Lincoln’s association with
: s Spencer County neighbors and acquaintances did much to mold and
t welop his character and shape his destiny. She refers particularly to his
I rmative and impressionable years and concludes that the Indiana back-
round contributed a great deal to Lincoln’s later success in life.

In the main portion of the book, the writer gives a bit of the drama
id romance in Lincoln's experience in Rockport both in his early years and
:er when he became well known.

Much of the information gleaned from the descendants of Lincoln’s
ighbors may have been subject to the embellishment that naturally accrued

|)m one generation to another. On the other hand, reference is made to the
itten biographies that have been prepared by the descendants of his Spencer
>unty neighbors. One has the feeling that these biographies may have de-
loped out of serious study and careful interpretation and, consequently, are
)re definite and reliable than much of the tradition that is given us by
>rd of mouth.

The value of this booklet lies in the intimate sketches and close-ups, in
; quotations from the published or written biographies of Lincoln’s neigh-

364

BOOK REVIEWS

bors. We have read many short sketches or references to Josiah Crawford;
and James and Allen Gentry. It is only natural that we want to know more
about the people from whom Lincoln borrowed books and more about those
he accompanied to New Orleans on the flatboat. The reader will also find much!
detailed information about other people who lived near Lincoln’s home in
Indiana.

In some respects this material is probably better suited to journalistic |i fl
than to book purposes. I do not try to evaluate the work except for its con-
tent and the impression it is likely to make. You cannot escape noting the'1!
writer’s sincerity, her loyalty to Spencer County, and her admiration for the i
great President.

Springfield. BRUCE E. wheeler.

Selective Service in Illinois, 1940-1947. By Victor Kleber. (Printed by Au-| jj
thority of the State of Illinois, 1949- Pp. 522.)

Following a brief preliminary statement of selective service in the United! |
States from the American Revolution to the Second World War, this book#
gives a detailed history of the administration of the Selective Training and#
Service Act of 1940 in Illinois.

On matters of organization and operation of the draft in this state it! a
provides an excellent reference. Pages 290 to 511 comprise an appendix of J
maps, documents (including the text of the Act of 1940), selective service; I
questionnaires, lists of members of all the local draft boards, the number of I
men registered and the number furnished by each board.

Anecdotes of draft history enliven the record from time to time; thejl
appendix adds to the value of the book as a reference work. Colonel Klebei .
was deputy director of selective service in Illinois.

Illinois State Historical Library. MARY WATTERS.

I *

Indiana Politics During the Civil War. By Kenneth M. Stampp. ( Indiana 1
Historical Bureau: Indianapolis, 1949. Pp. 300.)

In the two hundred and fifty years, more or less, of written history abou 1
the Midwest, the Civil War seems for some strange reason to hold morj r
interest than any other period. Indiana Politics During the Civil War is i I
case study of the experience of one commonwealth between I860 and 1865
The author opens his investigation with a description of the state’s politica :
development during the generation prior to the war. He states:

In 1861, Hoosiers angrily debated the question of war or peace ane
carefully weighed their decision on the scale of personal interest. Even th<

BOOK REVIEWS

365

our years of military conflict could not fuse the divergent elements in
ndiana society, and Appomattox found the basic issues between them es-
entially unchanged. Yet, though the issues were the same, a revolution had
occurred, for the balance of political power had shifted significantly.

The author focuses his study on this shift of power "which marked the
riumph of the principles of Clay over those of Jackson.”

This shift of power was typical of the Midwestern states, and this book
tolds interest for readers beyond the boundaries of Indiana. In other states
he new Republican Party struggled valiantly for self-discipline in the con-
,est with a Democratic Party hopelessly split. The Fort Sumter incident
■ united Indiana Republicans as it did Union men in other states, but the
tress of war caused a reaction and finally a so-called "collapse of constitu-
ional government.” This, too, was roughly paralleled in Illinois.

A chapter on mobilization discloses the great change in patriotism, and
Iso in nationalism, which has come over the Midwest in the last eighty years,
’eople who believe that the world is going to the dogs will have to change
:neir minds while reading this book.

J. M.

[he Army Air Forces in World War 11; Vol. 1, Plans and Early Operations
( January , 1939 to August, 1942). Edited by W. F. Craven and
J. L. Cate. (University of Chicago Press: Chicago, 1948. Pp.

788. $6.00.)

[he Army Air Forces in World War 11; Vol. 11, Europe: Torch to Pointblank
(August, 1942 to December, 1943). Edited by W. F. Craven and
J. L. Cate. (University of Chicago Press: Chicago, 1949. Pp.

897. $6.00.)

The first two volumes indicate that when the full series of seven books
.1 the United States Army’s air operations in World War II are published
will be the most complete record of its kind ever made. The Air His-
>rical Group of the United States Air Force was organized in the summer
' 1942. It was staffed with professionally trained historians, and they have
?en gathering and sifting material for this work ever since. From the be-
nning they had access to official Army files and since the war they have
;ed enemy files also. The series will be a final report to the American
-ople but it will not be an official report, the editors say, because it will
)t be one "to which the Air Staff necessarily subscribes in all its details
id final conclusions.”

As warfare becomes more and more complex it complicates the his-
rian’s efforts to capture the full story. And air warfare on a world-wide

366

BOOK REVIEWS

basis is the most complex of all. The widely separated fields of operatic
and the variety of operations make it impossible to give the whole scene
any one time. After a brief summary of the Air Force’s heritage from Wor
War I comes Pearl Harbor and the race to make up for tost time in produ
ing planes and training men. And then the scene shifts all over the map.

Some readers may never have known and others may have forgotte
how unprepared this country was for what happened on December 7, 194
The first volume of this history tells them exactly where the Air Force stood- |
practically down to the last man and the last plane. And the second volun
closes with the beginning of the full-scale bombing of Germany’s war plan
Between these two points were a great amount of organizing and reorganizin
building and planning, the retreat in the Pacific, the North African car
paign, and the invasion of Italy.

However, no matter how competently it is done there are certain dffl
advantages in this kind of history. Even after he has finished all seven \C ;
umes the reader wont really know what happened because he has been stud |
ing the activities of only one branch of the Army — and has scarcely hea;
mention of the ground troops or the Navy. While the series may not I |
'official” it is at least semi-official, and as such contains a great amount
material on plans and conferences and changes in command. It gives t|fl
complete story without showing who is right and who is wrong when diffi
ences arise.

Then, too, since this is a "report to the people” they should be warni .
that it is written in the Army’s own World War II language: June 1, 19- i
becomes 1 June 1949; 6: 30 P. M. is 1830, and practically everything has a coj
name — from AAB (Army Air Base) to X (Task force to move heavy bomb<!
to Australia).

But it is picayunish to took for shortcomings in a work that will pi( I
vide source books for future histories. Every former Air Force man a: J
all his friends and relatives will want to read it. And it will be a "mu:j
for every student of World War II — amateur and professional. That taw jfl
in just about everybody.

H. F. R.

;

Old Cabo kia: A Narrative and Documents Illustrating the First Century \
Its History. Edited by John Francis McDermott. (The St. Loi
Historical Documents Foundation: St. Louis, 1949. Pp. 355. Clo
$4.50; paper, $3.00.)

The Cahokia phase of Illinois history has been capably and, it seems, (
haustively written about in recent months. The present volume is exce

BOOK REVIEWS

367

tionally well done. In addition to the editor’s excellent opening chapter,
"Cahokia and Its People,” the book deals in detail with the life of this com-
munity principally through documents. A brief listing of the table of contents
will give some idea of its scope. Father Joseph P. Donnelly has three chap-
ters: "The Founding of the Holy Family Mission,” "Burial Records of the

Holy Family Church, 1784-1794,” and "Letters from Monks’ Mound.” Rose
Josephine Boylan edits the chapter, "Life in Cahokia as Illustrated by Legal
Documents, 1772-1821.” "A Business Venture at Cahokia: The Letters of
Charles Gratiot, 1778-1779,” is handled by Brenda R. Gieseker. Charles van
Ravenswaay edits "Affairs at Fort Bowman, 1778-1780: Accounts and Let-
ters,” and Irving Dilliard describes "Two Interesting Law Cases.”

Many documents hitherto unpublished are included. This is a real con-
tribution to Illinois history. The burial records, for example, are far from
' complete but most revealing. The social historian should find food for
thought here. Of the 650 people who were buried in the cemetery, 212
were children under 12, many of whom had died at birth. The letters from
Monks’ Mound throw light on that ill-fated experiment and on contemporary
events as well. Father Urban wrote on March 14, 1812:

Since October 16 we have felt earthquakes almost daily. They have
done little damage in the neighborhood, though I was nearly crushed by a
1 falling chimney. They say that New Madrid is entirely destroyed. The
source of the disturbance was a volcano in North Carolina from which was
'poured forth great explosions of fire, ashes and stone.

The summers were hot then as now. Charles Gratiot writing to his
•father, David Gratiot, on October 8, 1774, has this to say:

I am just returned from the Illinois country, part of Louisiana, an ex-
l tremely hot and feverish country. . . . The females are pretty enough although
a little tawny, and dress in the French fashion, generally coquettish, aspiring
1 after pleasure, amusing themselves, and dance much in spite of the summer’s
heat.

One could continue indefinitely dipping into these ancient papers that
bring a new light on the long buried past. But a sampling of the book itself
will give greater pleasure to those who enjoy journeys into the past.

S. A. w.

St. Peter’s Chapel in Grand Detour celebrated on June 12, the on! j
hundredth anniversary of its cornerstone laying. The chapel has been re: g
habilitated and public worship is now held there during the summer month'! I
This is the second oldest Episcopal church in the diocese of Chicago, Grao S
Church in Galena being the oldest.

"Trees Native to Madison County 150 Years Ago” was the topic o
Mrs. Neil Waterbury at the May meeting of the Alton Area Historical Soi
ciety. A brief memorial service was also held in honor of the late Judg;
Henry B. Eaton, a charter member of the group. Mrs. J. Marti was name*
to succeed Judge Eaton on the program committee.

The annual meeting of the Aurora Historical Society was held on Maj.l
10. A. J. Meiers, president of the museum board, presided. The followinj j
officers were elected: Lorin Hill, first vice-president; Mrs. Arthur F. Muschle
second vice-president; Eleanor Plain, treasurer; Dorothy Simpson, membei
ship secretary; and Bess Lockhart, secretary. Directors include: Robert ij
Brown, William F. Fowler, Charles W. Hoefer, John W. Holslag, L. Ralp
Mead, Hugh Parker, George C. Simpson, Frank Weisgerber, Mrs. Harol
Hamper, and Mrs. Frank Schark.

368

NEWS AND COMMENT

369

The Cahokia Historical Society presented a check for $50 to the Illinois
State Historical Society at the state group’s spring dinner meeting in East
St. Louis. Four-year-old Ann O’Leary made the presentation to Dr. Dwight
|F. Clark, president. The gift was for the Fiftieth Anniversary Celebration
of the Illinois State Historical Society, to be held in Springfield, October 7
md 8.

Special exhibits have been held at the Chicago Historical Society in
•ecent months. One, entitled "Prairie Avenue and the Chicago Scene, 1880-
,1900,” is occasioned by the recent publication of Arthur Meeker’s novel,
Prairie Avenue. Other exhibits include "Fifty Years — And More — of Base-
ball,” Dean Cornwell’s paintings of California missions, and a photographic
nistory of the Berlin blockade and airlift. These pictures were taken by
denry Ries, Berlin bureau photographer for the New York Times , and were
presented to the Chicago Historical Society by the newspaper.

The fourteenth annual meeting of the Ravenswood-Lake View (Chi-
jago) Historical Association was held on May 18. Dr. Preston Bradley spoke
j'n the subject, "The North Side — Past, Present, and Future.” Special ex-
ibits were arranged for this occasion.

Officers of the Association are: Sophie Chandler, president; Dr. H. K.
icatliff, first vice-president; Mrs. John Halversen, second vice-president;
i'hilip Schupp, third vice-president; Jessie E. Reed, honorary president; Helen
'atterberg, secretary-treasurer. The Advisory Council includes: Mrs. Helen

'.otharin, Fred Koehler, Mrs. Guy Cubley, Mrs. Winifred Healy, Mrs. Sophie
leim, Mrs. Carl Lueders, Mrs. T. T. Sullivan, and Charles Johnson.

The West Side (Chicago) Historical Society made a tour of former
idian areas on the north side of Chicago on Sunday, June 5.

The group had a "big time” on July 8 — West Side Day at the Chicago
.ailroad Fair. The "day” was sponsored by the West Side Historical Society
hich had prepared a parade, pageant, and special program. Bernard Baer,
||)ciety president, and Charles X. Clancy, president of the Garfield Park Busi-
'essmen’s Association, had leading parts in the pageant.

370

NEWS AND COMMENT

Herma Clark presented a program, "Chicago Silhouettes,” at the May-
meeting of the Historical Society of Woodiawn (Chicago).

Under the supervision of Henrietta Kueper, secretary of the Clinton
County Historical Society, the collection of material pertaining to the early
history of the county has begun. The plan is to file historical documents,
articles, and newspaper accounts in the office of the circuit clerk or in the
Case-Halstead Library at Carlyle.

The DuPage County Historical Society held its annual open meeting on
Sunday afternoon, June 12, in the Thornhill Building of the Morton Ar-
boretum near Lisle. J. C. Miller, of Oak Park, spoke on the Illinois and;
Michigan Canal. H. A. Berens, of Elmhurst, is president of the group.

Virginia Strawn Skinner presented a review of George Flower’s History \
of the English Settlement in Edwards County , Illinois at the regular May
meeting of the Edwards County Historical Society.

Sponsored by the Society, L. O. Trigg gave an illustrated lecture on the
Illinois Ozark country at the American Legion Hall in Albion on May 31.

The Galena Historical Society which had considered the possibility of i
disbanding was so encouraged by its May meeting that such thoughts were1
dispelled. President Gamber and Mrs. Weber, custodian, were complimented!
for their work.

jDDdLlll dDBjnnDHDDDHtl HHttn

The annual meeting of the Geneva Historical Society convened on May I
8, in the public library. Officers elected are: Dr. Charles H. Lyttle, president;
Mary Wheeler, first vice-president; Mrs. Florence Smith, second vice-presi-
dent; Jeanita Peterson, treasurer; Mrs. Margaret A. Allan, secretary. Board!
members include: Mrs. William D. Bangs, Sr., and William K. Bullock.
Mabel Anderson read a paper on the history of the Swedish people in Geneva.

NEWS AND COMMENT

371

Officers of the Glencoe Historical Society are: Victor W. Nelson, presi-
ent; Mrs. John A. Grant, vice-president; Mrs. Paul W. Chapin, secretary;
ouis W. Hein, treasurer, and Helen Beckwith, custodian. Committee chair-
len are: Mrs. Lewis I. Birdsall, membership; Mrs. James K. Calhoun, pro-
ram; Mrs. George R. Young, social; Mrs. Harry T. Booth, research; Frank
). Loomis, rules; and Fred L. Holmes, publicity.

The McLean County Historical Society sponsored a bus trip to Nauvoo,
le Dickson Mounds, and Carl Sandburg’s home in Galesburg on Memorial
)ay.

The Society has recently acquired an original painting by Sidney Smith,
hrtoonist and creator of "The Gumps.” Smith’s boyhood home was in
loomington. A dentist’s gold rolling machine, used by Sidney Smith’s
ither, Dr. T. H. Smith, has also been given to the Society.

Otto R. Kyle spoke at the June meeting of the Macon County Historical
ociety. Mr. Kyle told of his trip to Cahokia and the spring tour of the
linois State Historical Society.

The Madison County Historical Society met at Liberty Prairie in May.
he meeting was a memorial to the late State Senator Norman G. Flagg,
•ssie E. Springer, the principal speaker, paid tribute to "Flagg of Liberty
L'airie.”

The city of Mattoon observed its ninety-fifth anniversary on June 9.
le Mattoon Journal-Gazette and radio station WLBH gave special promi-
see to the founding and history of Mattoon. The Mattoon Historical So-
-ty assisted both in the collection of material to be used.

The Oak Park Historical Society heard the architect, Frank M. Pray, in
}ril in a program entitled "An Architect Travels Through Europe and

372-

NEWS AND COMMENT

Asia.” Mrs. George W. White, president, presided. Thomas Doane and
J. C. Miller spoke at the May meeting when the annual election of officers!
was held.

Ernest E. East spoke before the Peoria Historical Society in May. HejB
told of the Cahokia 250th Anniversary Celebration which he attended as ail
member of the Illinois State Historical Society.

Officers of the Society are: George E. Johnson, president; Eugene Brown, <
vice-president; Mrs. Edna Reichelderfer, secretary; and E. C. Bessler, treasurer.;®
Directors include: R. N. Brons, J. S. Frye, and Dallas Sweney.

Principal speaker at the June meeting of the Rock Island County His- b
torical Society was A. Richard Crabb. He showed a colored motion picture; 1
"The Great Story of Corn.”

Officers elected at this meeting were: O. L. Nordstrom, president; John ;
H. Hauberg, honorary president; C. R. Rosborough, first vice-president; J. L.
Oakleaf, second vice-president; Mrs. C. E. Stephenson, secretary; Mrs. ClairH
G. Golden, treasurer; Helen Marshall, archivist. Directors elected were: !
Clarence Skinner, Georgia First, Louis Hauberg, Mrs. R. Taylor Drake, Julia I
Mallette, and Florence Libby.

Judge Ralph Choisser spoke at the May meeting of the Saline County;!
Historical Society. Judge Choisser, himself a direct descendant of Jean!
Baptiste Saucier, spoke on the "Early Settlement of Kaskaskia and Cahokia.”ji
The group held a picnic supper at the Old Stone Face on Eagle Mountain!;
on June 7.

An unusual exhibit of Indian stone axes, spears, arrows, etc., from the
private collection of Frank E. Chaffee was displayed early in the summer in
the museum of the Stephenson County Historical Society.

NEWS AND COMMENT

373

At its May meeting the Winnetka Historical Society was entertained
by about thirty members of the North Shore chapter of the SPEBSQSA, Inc.,
familiarly known as Barbershoppers.

MEMBERSHIP INCREASE SETS RECORD

During the second quarter of this year the Illinois State Historical So-
ciety enrolled 385 new members. This is the largest increase of any three-
month period ever recorded by the Society. Compare it with 286 new
members in the first quarter of this year and 151 in the second quarter of
1948. Following are the names of those who joined the Society during
April, May, and June of this year:

LIFE MEMBERS

Robert F. Koenig and Mrs. Robert F. Koenig Freeport

ANNUAL MEMBERS

Acton, Harold Thomas Glencoe

Adams, Harriet D Chicago

Adams, John R Madison, Wis.

Ainsworth, Charles Moline

Albus, Harry J Wheaton

Alden, Carrie Louise Chicago

Allen, James A Aledo

Andersen, Alfred N River Forest

Anderson, George W Mendota

Anderson, P. P Canton

Andrews, William J Centralia

Armstrong, Lloyd H Metropolis

lArneson, Dr. J. B Elmwood Park

fArtman, Pauline Joppa

Ause, Orval H Oak Park

Baer, Bernard Chicago

Baldwin, J. R. W Hubbard Woods

, Baldwin, Sidney . . . Boothbay Harbor, Me.

■Bane, Charles A Chicago

Barnes, William R St. Louis, Mo.

Bates, Albert Elmhurst

Baxter, Dr. Albert C Springfield

(Baxter, Mrs. George E Jacksonville

• Beal, Helen L Chicago

(Becker, Alfred F Springfield

iBeeman, Mabel Litchfield

IBeggs, Mrs. Norman Oak Park

Belt, James Shawneetown

* Bennett, Mrs. William F Flora

Bethge, Charles A Crystal Lake

Bidwell, Mrs. Elisa C Freeport

Black, Hugh E La Salle

Black, Robert T Carrollton

Blanchard, H. B Centralia

Boyle, Mrs. Walter A Henry

Boyle, Walter D Hennepin

Bradfield, Charles L Tyler

Brickey, Mrs. Norville W. . . . Festus, Mo.

Brighton, Mrs. William Weldon

Brissenden, Robert L Flora

Brosted, T. O Chicago

Broughton, Mrs. G. H Decatur

Brown, Calvin Elmhurst

Brown, Horace G Shawneetown

Brown, Margaret Lois Millstadt

Bryant, Mrs. Cullen Kirkwood

Bue, Carl O Elmhurst

Buerkin, Katherine Quincy

Bulkeley, Mrs. Harry C Abingdon

Bull, Mason Morrison

Bunn, Mrs. Nella V Flora

Burke, Dorothy E Harvey

Byrne, Loretta Springfield

Call, S. Leigh Springfield

Campbell, N. A Pittsfield, Mass.

Carruthers, Mrs. G. C Springfield

Carson, Mrs. John P Waltonville

Case, Dr. Glenn I Kewanee

374

NEWS AND COMMENT

Celia, Louis B Oak Park

Center, R. G Highland

Church, Ralph E Evanston

Clark, Mrs. William Chicago

Cloninger, Mrs. Fred Tulsa, Okla.

Cobb, Mrs. Floyd Marion

Cook, Edgar C Mendota

Coon, Mrs. Nancy D Freeport

Corbett, Zella C Mt. Carroll

Corneau, Mrs. Addison Springfield

Crampton, Mrs. Albert Moline

Crowe, Dewitt Springfield

Curran, John W Chicago

Curtis, V. D Kewanee

Curtiss, Mrs. Charles R Joliet

Dahms, Julius E Chicago

Damp, Everett Reynolds

Davidson, Patricia Hinchliff

Santiago, Chile

Davis, Bobbie . .Newton

Davis, Gordon Springfield

Davis, Plaford M Effingham

Davis, Mrs. Ralph W Geneva

Davis, Regina Litchfield

Davis, Robert H Shawneetown

Davis, Robert M Omaha

Dayton, Carolyn Flora

Dexheimer, R. D Chicago

Dickson, R. B Kewanee

Donohue, Richard J. . . Chicago

Dorris, W. R O’Fallon

Dunn, Thomas F., Jr Oak Park

Dunn, William W Peoria

East, Howard T Chicago

Eberhart, A. Dryden Wilmette

Edwards, Nancy Ware. . .Redlands, Calif.

Ellinghausen, John G Tulsa, Okla.

Elliott, Mrs. Ethel S Albion

Elliott, Mrs. Ivan A .Springfield

Ellis, C. Howard Naperville

Ensrud, A. G Oak Park

Errett, A. W., Jr. . Kewanee

Erwin, Paul Francis Evanston

Evans, Mrs. Elmer L Springfield

Evers, Mrs. Nellie T Metropolis

Farrell, E. H Chicago

Faull, Mrs. Ethel A Kewanee

Felts, Mrs. H. A Marion

Fernald, Paul R Geneva

Ferriss, Mrs. E. R St. Charles

Fitch, Dr. Harold W Bushnell

Flenniken, Mrs. Lola Cowden

Foss, Mrs. Eugene D Flora

Friedli, Mrs. F. J Belleville

Gallagher, Rev. A. J Chicago

Georgson, Gladys Chicago

Gergen, C. F East St. Louis

Gibson, D. G Elizabethtown i

Gifford, Emery Newton

Gilbert, Cmdr. A. A Winnetka j

Giles, Barbara Bartlett

Gorby, Paul F Chicago i

Green, George L Winnetka

Grenzebach, Chester Chicago;

Grimes, Mignon East St. Louis ;

Gumbart, Mrs. George Conrad. .Macomb i

Gury, Albert F., Jr Peoria Heights

Gustafson, Rudolph A Chicago

Habbegger, Frederick L Highland

Hadden, Mrs. Samuel C

Indianapolis, Ind.

Hagler, Marie Wilmington

Hall, Richard Wheaton

Halter, E. J. . . Chicago

Hamlin, C. A. . Springfield

Hand, Fred. E Canton

Hanks, Lee Hardin

Hardesty, Dr. R. R Hardin

Harding, Dwight S Chicago

Harlan, Nancy Irene. . . .Redlands, Calif.

Harmany, Phil C Charleston

Harms, Mildred Chicago

Harris, R. W Marion

Hawthorne, Elizabeth L La Place

Hax, Jacob Sterling

Heath, Mrs. A. F Litchfield

Heath, Mrs. Beatrice Kane .... Robinson

Hedberg, Marvin Maroa

Heise, Leo A Litchfield

Hey, Louis E Springfield

Hinchliff, Ralph, Jr Fallbrook, Calif.

Hinchliff, Rockwell . . .Los Angles, Calif.

Hinchliff, William Emerson. .

Jefferson, Wis.

Holdoway, Mrs. H. C Elorado

Holly, Mrs. Fred E Tonica

Holmes, Grover E Metropolis

Hopkins, Mrs. William Cabell

Columbus, Ga.

Hubbard, Vernie Louise Dixon

Huelat, Edward E Chicago

Hughes, Ruth P Freeport

Humma, Henry H., Sr Metropolis

Hunsaker, B. W. Vienna

Irwin, Robert B Springfield i

Ives, Dale G Aledof

James, O. A Salem)

Jay, Norman A Steelevillel

Jenkins, Mrs. Helen A Canton

Johnson, Mrs. Dana Sterling

Johnson, Frank P Kewanee!

Johnson, Gilbert Cornell |

Johnson, Mrs. M. M Decatur

Johnson, William G Chicago!

NEWS AND COMMENT

375

ohnston, Mr. and Mrs. Charles F., Jr.

Dixon

.ordan, Mary Longina. . . .Cherry Valley

ialbow, Dorothea Chicago

iatz, Dr. Julius Alton

Kennedy, Thomas Granville

ierley, Bryan Grantsburg

.ing, Mrs. Anna J Athens

. '.ing, Mrs. Lolita Rutland

iingdon, C. C El Paso

dtowski, John E Maroa

demm, Mr. and Mrs. Julius P

Bloomington

ilotz, Edward C Chicago

dnapp, Dr. Alfred A Peoria

jiight, Robert Brimfield

^nowlton, Mrs. K. H Freeport

.olancnick, Mrs. William J Chicago

Tamp, Louis J Chicago

Tesse, O. R Antioch

(jug, William J Godfrey

;ambert, Mrs. Merlin W Tonica

ane, Paul R Evanston

arson, Elwood H Dixon

'athrop, Mrs. Maude Newton

aurent, Welda H Prairie du Rocher

awless, Mary C Freeport

‘awson, C. D Aledo

jay, Frank M Kewanee

iavenworth, Frank E Godfrey

?avenworth, Mrs. Lillian A Godfrey

jdnbaugh, Howard M Lewistown

; Roi, W. Paul Lake Forest

,ivington, Vada Freeport

?wis, Mrs. John G Chicago

: ndsay, Frank M Decatur

nehan, Neil J Chicago

link, Rev. George M Michael

* ttle, Charles T Kewanee

png, Mrs. C. Sterry Pontiac

png, Louella M Freeport

jvatz, Anton R Freeport

itouveau, Albert Modoc

■'on, M. H., Jr Moline

cAllister, R. J De Kalb

’ cCallister, Mrs. James M Chicago

cEvilly, Mrs. Cora . . . Los Angeles, Calif.

cLaughlin, John B Chicago

cMackin, Helen Salem

cNutt, Bessie Savanna

adden, Marlow J Chicago

arti, Julius Alton

artin, Laura Brighton

jarvin, Matthew A Freeport

Jason, Mrs. George, Jr Chicago

athis, Blanche K Springfield

' autz, Mrs. Maude R St. Elmo

* aynard, Mrs. Nell Brookport

Merriam, Robert E Chicago

Merwin, Loring C Bloomington

Metcalf, Mrs. George J Chicago

Meyer, Harm J Omaha

Meyer, Harry L Alton

Middagh, Mrs. E. C Metropolis

Miers, Earl S New Brunswick, N. J.

Millikan, Col. Glen G Aledo

Mills, Walker H Decatur

Moore, A. K. . . . Equality

Moore, Dr. and Mrs. Ralph H Aledo

Morgan, H. T Peoria

Morgan, Mrs. William H. . . Edwardsville

Morris, Mrs. William A Dixon

Morse, Robert K Bloomington

Myers, Mr. and Mrs. Clarence C. . .Peoria

Nadel, Irene Cicero

Nattress, Ruby R. . Dixon

Nelson, Charles J Springfield

Nielson, Elker R Deerfield

Nielson, Mrs. James P Quincy

Norcross, H. C Carlyle

Oakley, Mrs. Ray M Quincy

O’Connor, Martin E Kewanee

O’Hair, Mrs. Mary C Chicago

Olsen, Ernest P Aledo

Oppenheim, Eva Princeton

Palmer, Mrs. Murl St. Louis, Mo.

Patton, B. E Springfield

Peacock, John R High Point, N. C.

Peebles, Mrs. Earle Carlinville

Pettersen, Frank O Elmhurst

Pezman, A. L Mt. Sterling

Pickering, Mrs. Louise H Springfield

Pierson, Smart E Carrollton

Polster, Philip B Collinsville

Pomeroy, Ernest O Epworth

Powel, Mrs. Howard Taylorville

Price, Mrs. Robert C Hudson

Puffer, Mrs. Noble J Crystal Lake

Raders, Dr. Marie Kent

Ramsay, C. J Metropolis

Ranney, Mrs. George A., Jr. . . Libertyville

Reichelderfer, Mrs. Edna Peoria

Remmert, Dr. Arthur T. G Chicago

Rennels, Mrs. Jennie L Carmi

Reque, E. S Wayne

Richards, Mrs. Merle M Robinson

Ridgway, Mrs. Fred Freeport

Riggs, Layah Decatur

Roberts, Charles H Salem

Robertson, J. W Chicago

Robertson, Mrs. Lloyd B Vienna

Robinson, W. R Manhasset, N. Y.

Rohde, Mrs. E. V Alton

Roos, Charles M East St. Louis

Rose, Eugene C Mt. Sterling

376

NEWS AND COMMENT

Rose, Myrtle Savanna

Rosenstill, Mrs. J. H Freeport

Ross, Mrs. Elsie Benton

Rucker, Mrs. M. B Argenta

Rudolph, Martin A Chicago

Ruschke, William A Chicago

Rutledge, Leighton St. Louis, Mo.

Saggars, Wayne Crystal Lake

Samson, Mrs. Edward Dixon

Sargent, Mr. and Mrs. Clarence E. . . Alton

Satkowski, Bruno J Chicago

Schaad, Maud Virginia

Schenk, Meryl Nauvoo

Schlitt, Fredrick P Springfield

Schmidt, Clara E Nashville

Schuler, Dement Dixon

Scott, Harriett Grace. . . .Brookline, Mass.

Sentz, Mrs. Charles E Princeville

Settlemoir, H. C Vienna

Shirey, M. R Danville

Shuman, Mrs. Harry E Sterling

Simpson, Maj. Harold B Champaign

Skogh, Mr. and Mrs. C. W Cary

Skoglund, H. Oliver Westchester

Sleezer, Norman C Freeport

Smith, Mrs. B. B Kewanee

Smith, Carl H Metropolis

Smith, George O Princeton

Smith, Herman . . . .Grand Rapids, Mich.

Smith, L. W Metropolis

Smith, Dr. William R Kewanee

Snow, Gilbert C Chicago

Spivey, E. C Shawneetown

Stamper, Charlotte Alton

Star, Jack Chicago Heights

Steeg, Mrs. Elberta R. . Los Angeles, Calif.

Steiger, William A Springfield

Stephenson, Robert B Chatsworth

Stiegel, L. W Moline

Stokes, Mrs. T. R Kewanee

Stone, Mrs. Lawrence E. . . . . . Springfield

Stotlar, Edwin M Marion

Strauss, Mrs. E. A Chicago

Strauss, Herbert R Chicago

Stuttle, Mrs. H. C Litchfield

Sutton, Jesse W Danville

Swan, Mrs. Della S Fairfield

Swanson, Claude M Paxton

Taylor, Orville Chicago

Teal, Marion P Clinton

Teal, William Elgin

Templin, Mrs. Lelia N Thornton

Thompson, Dr. D. J Elmhurst i

Thorsness, Lionel George Chicago! j

Thuline, Joel S Galva ;

Tomei, Felix, Jr Northbrook; a

Tonk, Doris A Chicago;*,

Toothe, Mrs. C. H Galesburg I

Torland, Earl B Oak Park £

Torley, Mrs. Lavonna M Galesburg; I

Travis, Roy Rosiclare |

Trumbo, Mr. and Mrs. Riley. . .Marseilles!!

Tuckerman, F. M Chicago; I

Tureman, Mrs. Cuba M Hardin! j

Vass, Verna Springfield:

Veach, Stanley Vienna!;

Velde, Harold H Washington, D. C.

Voiles, Florus L Carrollton

Vose, Mr. and Mrs. F. P Evanston;,!

Vursell, Charles W.. . .Washington, D. C.

Wadsworth, Mrs. Eva Dixon-

Wagner, Mrs. Frederic Freeport;

Wahler, Mr. and Mrs. R. E Dixon;

Wakefield, Mrs. F. L Heyworth!

Waller, Harold E Kewanee

Wasson, Norman Newton

Watt, Wray G Alexisj

Weathers, Mrs. E. A Chicago

Webbink, Selma A Mendota

Weber, Mrs. Laura Freeport

Weinberg, Saul B Brooklyn, N. Y.

Wheeler, Alice M Harvey

Wiechecki, T. A Chicagol

Wilkinson, Dr. Scott J Decatur!

Williams, Mrs. A. Clay Pittsfield!

Williams, Dr. E. G. C Danvillel

Williams, H. C Omahal

Williams, Mentor L Chicago!

Williams, T. Y Junction

Willis, Frank J Berwynj

Williston, Alfred E Chicago!

Wilson, Charles M Touloru

Windsor, Mrs. H. T Geneva

Wolf, Joseph C Maywood

Wood, Violet F. Champaign

Woods, Mrs. Charles H Lincoln

Wrench, Frank Deland

Wylie, Thompson Sterling

Zapf, Mrs. Alfred

Zeltmann, Margaretha ....

Zimmerman, Fred

Zimmerman, Mrs. George E.

. Freeport
. . .Alton
San Jose
. Chicago

NEWS AND COMMENT

377

CARD OF THANKS

The following individuals and organizations deserve the thanks of the
llinois State Historical Society for adding to its membership lists during the
irst six months of 1949:

Abrahamson, Elmer E Chicago

Adams, Katharine K Chicago

Albade, Wells Chicago

.Allen, George B Chicago

Allyn, Mrs. Paul Waverly

jAltholz, Leo S Chicago

Anderson, Mrs. E. E Chicago

Andris, Emil Marion

Anson, Mrs. Jessie M. . . McPherson, Kan.

ipplegate, Mrs. Alice Aurora

Asher, Emma East St. Louis

Magnolia, Mary Chicago

Aaker, Harold G Belleville

kail, W. Allen Carmi

Barnes, Mrs. Ella B Carmi

IJarrett, Lyman G Salem

dasler, Roy P Springfield

Haumert, Michael Nauvoo

IJerens, H. A Elmhurst

Itonzi, Marion D Springfield

•Jrannan, Mrs. J. A Jerseyville

Brewer, Mrs. Emmalu Westville

Brian, Mrs. F. B Toulon

Sriggs, Mrs. W. G Chicago

Brown, Mrs. Archie W Dixon

buerkin, Augusta M Quincy

lluggie, Olive M Chicago

burke, Arthur E Chicago

burke, Harry R .St. Louis, Mo.

Jiurris, Marshall J Taylorville

jbyrnes, John E Brighton

Tanaday, Dayton W Litchfield

Khapman, Mrs. W. K Tonica

[dark, Herma Chicago

•lobb, Mrs. Floyd Marion

Konner, Thomas J Prairie du Rocher

took, Mrs. Harry G Ottawa

Iboke, Mrs. Russell S Springfield

ope, A. J Springfield

ox, Mrs. M. E Robinson

rusoe, William J Chicago

>avenport, Richard C Harrisburg

>ay, William L Springfield

•ennehy, Rev. Thomas Westmont

>ewhirst, David M Maroa

•ickson, Mrs. Lansing A Monmouth

•illiard, Irving Collinsville

»oolen, Paul ~ .Decatur

•rury, John Chesterton, Ind.

!uffy, Mollie Dixon

Dunn, Inez Bloomington

East, Ernest E Peoria

Ellingen, O. J Mendota

Elliott, Mrs. Ethel S Albion

Embree, Waite W DeKalb

Evans, U. L Shelbyville

Farnum, Dr. C. G Peoria

Felts, David V Decatur

Fisher, Meda Hill River Forest

Flint, Margaret A Springfield

Fordyce, Dr. A. W Gilman

Gaddis, Sibley B Mt. Sterling

Gallagher, J. P Mendota

Garrett, Fern Decatur

Getz, James R Lake Forest

Gibson, Ruth E Chicago

Halley, Mrs. H. H Chicago

Hanna, Mrs. Edna Frances. . . .Springfield

Harris, Cora B Macomb

Heaps, Mr. and Mrs. S. L Kewanee

Henderson, Alfred J Jacksonville

Hey, Louis E Springfield

Hinchliff, Mrs. Ralph Rockford

Holbrook, Mrs. J. Howard . . . Springfield

Holloway, Walter A Evanston

Holman, Mrs. Winifred L

Belmont, Mass.

Hudson, H. Gary Jacksonville

Hundley, Grace E Flora

Ittner, Vernon W Highland

Ives, Mrs. Ernest L Bloomington

Jacobs, Cora Sterling

James, Mrs. R. M Springfield

Jenkins, Mrs. Helen A Canton

Johnson, Alfred E. Carrollton

Johnson, Mrs. B. M Harvey

Johnson, Frank P. Kewanee

Johnson, Will H Bloomington

Jones, Curran N St. Elmo

Jones, Edward M Salem

Kalbfell, Conrad J Evanston

Karraker, O. M Dixon

Keister, Philip L Freeport

Kennicott, Hiram L Des Plaines

Kerr, C. C Cave-in-Rock

Kiniery, Paul Chicago

378

NEWS AND COMMENT

Knapp, Mrs. C. E. . . . Springfield

Knox, Earl . Oquawka

Kogan, Herman Chicago

Kross, Michael Elmhurst

Lawrence, Mrs. Clifford. ...... .Hudson

Leaman, Bertha R .Mt. Carroll

Leavenworth, Frank E .Godfrey

Levering, Benjamin Chicago

Lewis, Mrs. John S Carbondale

Lewis, Paul O .Chicago

Long, Albert S Chicago

Long, Everette B. .Chicago

Ludens, Lawrence A Morrison

McLaughlin, John B .Chicago

Mandel, Leon Chicago

Mannon, Mrs. Lois A Lena

Mansfield W Goshen, Ind.

Mathews, D’Roy Chicago

Mathis, Blanche K Springfield

Meyer, Mrs. Harry L Alton

Mitchell, Stephen A. Chicago

Monaghan, J Springfield

Morris, S. P Sterling

Morrison, C. B. . . . . . Waterloo

Naney, William H Flora

Nedved, Olga Cicero

Nedwick, Jerrold Chicago

Nevius, Guernsey V. ....... . . Winnetka

Newman, Ralph G Chicago

Oestreich, Mrs. Kathryn D Carthage

Oien, John G Chicago

Paisley, Oldham Marion

Patmore, Mr. and Mrs. Charles W. . . .

Paulus, Sylvester E Chicago

Pierson, David Robert .Chicago

Quinlan, Frederick F Lake Forest

Rabourn, Cecil C Carrier Mills

Ramsdeli, Mrs. Bentley F. ..... . Geneva

Randall, J. G. . . . Urbana

Ranson, Mrs. Addie R .Decatur

Read, W. B . .Bloomington

Reddick, W. C Springfield

Reeser, Mrs. Carl Weld<

Reilly, Mrs. Frank C Cantrs

Renfer, Arthur Oakwo<

Reque, John L Chica

Richmond, Mabel E Decat

Robinson, W. B. . Springfie

Rose, Dr. Milton E Decat

Russell, John L Effingha

Ryan, Frank Chica;

Sapp, Mrs. Frederick A Ottai

Scherer, Andrew G. Evanst<

Scott, Mrs. L. E. . . . Decat

Searle, J. Clinton Rock Islai

Severns, Roger L Chica

Shriner, Emma E. ............. . Peoi

Simmonds, Claude E Belmont, Ma

Skogh, Harriet M. ......... . Springfie

Skoglund, Henry L Evanst

Slater, Dr. R. C. .... . La Sa

Smith, Hermon Dunlap .... Lake For
Stephens, Ethel Gertrude . . . Bloomingt

Stephens, Robert A., Jr. Springfie

Stevens, Jewell F. . . Chica

Stiegel, L. W.. ..... Moli

Stobbs, Mrs. Frank J Alt

Sutton, Jesse W Danvi

Thuline, Florence . Springfie

Tisler, C. C .Otta

Toothe, Mrs. C. H. . Galesbu

Townley, Wayne C. Bloomingt

Unger, Hunt H. . . Chica

Walsh, Mary Chica

Wentsel, Karl J . .Sterli

White, Rt. Rev. John Chanler ......

Springfie

Whiteside, Daisy L Bellevi

Whitney, Mrs. Francis A Springfie

Williams, Edna . Quin

Williamson, Dr. M. R Alt

Wright, Gilbert Springfie

Wylie, Thompson Sterli

Younkin, Glenn Springfie

Zeiders, Mrs. W. W. Freep

The III inois State

HISTORICAL LIBRARY

TRUSTEES

Alfred W. Stern Clarence P. McClelland

Benjamin P. Thomas

The Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society is pub-
lished by the Illinois State Historical Library for distribu-
tion to members of the Society.

STAFF OF THE JOURNAL
J. Monaghan, Editor

S. A. YVetherbee and Howard F. Rissler, Associate Editors

Manuscripts submitted for publication should be ad-
dressed to J. Monaghan, Illinois State Historical Library,
Springfield, Illinois.

The editors do not assume any responsibility for the per-
sonal opinions expressed by authors of articles published.

ENTERED AS SECOND-CLASS MATTER ON JULY 5, 1918, AT THE POST OFFICE
AT SPRINGFIELD, ILLINOIS, UNDER THE ACT OF OCTOBER 5, 1917

JOURNAL OF THE

ILLINOIS STATE

Historical Society

/olume xlii Number 4 December 1949

Published four times a year, in March, June, September, and December

STATE OF ILLINOIS
Adlai E. Stevenson, Governor

(Printed by Authority of the State of Illinois)

fABLE OF CONTENTS

Stephen A. Douglas: His Weaknesses and His Greatness

Allan Nevins 385

Slavery and Negro Servitude in Pope County, Illinois

John W. Allen 411

Keen & Cooke: Prairie Publishers
Madeleine B. Stern

5ioneer Illinois Library

R. Louise Travous

Lincolniana

Lincoln’s Other Boswell, by Jay Monaghan

iisTORicAL Notes

Gold Rush Fever Hits Mount

Morris, by Upton Swingley

llinois Scrapbook.

*ook Reviews

Hews and Comment

424

446

454

457

463

472

486

ILLUSTRATIONS^ ^

Carl Sandburg at New Salem Front Cover

Stephen A. Douglas in 1859 384

"Storming the Castle,” Currier & Ives Cartoon 406

Keen & Cooke Letterheads 436-437

Leonard W. Volk 455

West Lane Leading to the Pinkerton House 464

The Historical Society at New Salem State Park 488-489

Membership Far Above 1949 Goal 510

Stephen A. Douglas in 1859

This photograph was made when the Little Giant was practically at the I
peak of his career. Among the pictures of Douglas published previously injl
the Journal was one in the September, 1947, issue, which shows him with a ;
full beard.

STEPHEN

WEAKNESSES

A. DOUGLAS: HIS
AND HIS GREATNESS

BY ALLAN NEVINS

THE fame of Stephen A. Douglas has passed through vicis-
situdes as curious as that of any American leader. For
decades after the Civil War his career was used by most writers
as a foil to that of Lincoln. The easiest way to illustrate Lin-
coln’s statesmanship was to contrast it with Douglas’ alleged
demagogy, and the most effective way of illustrating Lincoln’s
moral elevation was to place it beside Douglas’ supposed
moral flatness. So late as 1915 William Roscoe Thayer, in his
life of John Hay, scornfully dismissed Douglas as a man whose
influence was negligible. But, wrote Thayer:

History will not forget him, however much he might pray to be for-
gotten; because he is as indissolubly bound up with Lincoln’s immortality
as Brums is with Caesar’s. He remains as a warning to men of good inten-
tions, much vanity, and no solid morality, who, in a national crisis, when
the difference between conflicting principles stands out as uncompromisingly
as life and death, insist that it is only a matter of shading.

Illinoisan Allan Nevins has had a long and distinguished
career as a historian. He was born at Camp Point in Adams County,
studied and later taught at the University of Illinois and now is pro-
fessor of American history at Columbia University in New York.
The author of some twenty -five books on historical subjects he has
twice won the Pultizer Prize for biography. This sketch of Stephen
A. Douglas was delivered at the Sponsors’ Dinner of the Illinois
State Historical Society in Springfeld on October 7. The following
day at New Salem, Carl Sandburg called it " the best life of Douglas”
he had ever heard.

385

386

STEPHEN A. DOUGLAS

The historian Rhodes, while praising Douglas’ powers of
leadership, declared that posterity must condemn him just as it
condemned Taney. Charnwood, in his life of Lincoln, but.
expressed the old conventional view when he wrote of Douglas
as a powerful parliamentarian who gained his effects by "the
blustering, declamatory, shamelessly fallacious and evasive
oratory of a common demagogue.”

It is a great misfortune, as Aaron Burr found out in Jeffer-
son’s time, and Calhoun in Jackson’s, to be the opponent of a
President who becomes a national hero. Impartial justice was J
not done to Douglas until in 1907 a New Englander who had :
taught for a time in Iowa College and imbibed the spirit of the \
West, Allen Johnson, published the first good life of the man,
He laid his finger upon two of Douglas’ chief claims to grate-
ful remembrance, his comprehension of the value of the pub- d
lie domain, and his belief in territorial expansion. He wrote: •

The ends which this strenuous Westerner had in view werejl
not wholly gross and materialistic. To create the body of a great American! I
Commonwealth by removing barriers to its continental expansion, so that, I
the soul of Liberty might dwell within it, was no vulgar ambition. The con- j
quest of the continent must be accounted one of the really great achievements 1
of the century. In this dramatic exploit Douglas was at times an irresponsible! I
but never a weak nor a false actor.

When Beveridge’s life of Lincoln was published in 1928. f
he gave Douglas a different type of credit. Accepting the |
validity of the popular sovereignty principle, and flatly contra-! d
dieting the Schouler-Rhodes school of historians, he declared! I
that Douglas had offered the most constructive of all proposals
for ending the sectional conflict. In some parts of this biog-
raphy we see, not Douglas the politician made a foil for Lin-
coln the statesman, but Lincoln the politician made a foil for
Douglas the statesman — or something near this. And in
George Fort Milton’s Eve of Conflict the case for Douglas the
statesman is argued with a wealth of detail.

Behind these conflicting interpretations lies a personality

ALLAN NEVINS

387

which was itself full of conflict. Douglas the man had aspects
which appear in stark contrast with one another. At one hour
he could be the heroically disciplined chieftain of a great
party; in the next he could exhibit the loose, boisterous man-
ners of the frontier tavern. Two scenes drawn from the last
year of his life will illustrate the gamut run by his traits and
conduct.

Take the discreditable picture first. Charles Francis
Adams, Jr., just out of Harvard, in I860 accompanied William
H. Seward on a campaign tour into the Middle West. On their
return they took a sleeping car from Chicago to Cleveland. At
Toledo they were roused by loud cheering. Some man rushed
into the car, loudly demanding: "Where’s Seward?” It was
Stephen A. Douglas. Seward’s berth was pointed out. Doug-
las threw back the curtains, exclaiming: "Come, Governor,
they want to see you. Come out and speak to the boys!” Seward
drowsily protested: "How are you, judge? No, I can’t go out.
I’m sleepy.” To which Douglas replied: "Well, what of that?
They get me out when I’m sleepy.” "No, I won’t go,” persisted
Seward, and Douglas withdrew. He carried a bottle of whisky
and as he left paused for a swig. Men in the car said that he
was half drunk. He had been addressing the Democrats of
Toledo; he knew that they would credit him with a smart
stroke if he dragged Seward out as an exhibit; and so, bottle
in hand, he had burst into the car. At the time he was running
for President.

It is pleasant to turn to the creditable scene. The date
, was a few months later, April 25, 1861; the place was Spring-
; field. The legislature was in session, while the city was alive
with volunteers training at Camp Yates. Never had news that
Senator Douglas was to speak failed to bring a crowd into
; Springfield. It was announced that he had left Washington to
j arouse the Northwest to battle, and at eight o’clock that night
[would address a joint session of the two houses. Evening found
the capitol packed. When he rose the applause was deafening.

388

STEPHEN A. DOUGLAS

He lifted his sonorous voice with a fiery energy worthy of his
cause.

Half a century later men recalled that speech with emo-
tion. The Republican editor, Horace White, was in the audi-
ence; and White declared that he did not think it possible for
a human being to produce a more electric effect with the spoken
word. Said Douglas:

Hostile armies are now marching upon the Federal capitol with the
view of planting a revolutionary flag upon its dome; seizing the national
archives; taking captive the President. . . . The boast has gone forth by the
Secretary of War of this revolutionary government that on the 1st of May:
the revolutionary flag shall float from the wall of the capitol in Washington,'
and that on July 4th the revolutionary army shall hold possession of the Hall!
of Independence in Philadelphia. The simple question presented to us is
whether we shall wait for the enemy to carry out his boast of making war!
upon our soil, or whether we shall rush as one man to the defense of out!
government and its capital.

Men left the building with their blood on fire.

Such contrasts run through the Senator’s mature career.
We have the Douglas of prodigious energy, toiling on legisla-i
tion until his health sank; we have the Douglas who threw his
arms about low cronies in Washington barrooms. We have the
Douglas who bore one of Washington’s most fashionable?
belles, Adele Cutts, to the altar; we have the other Douglas;
who offended guests at a Hartford reception by spitting
tobacco on a floor swept by ladies’ gowns. We have the Doug-;
las who telegraphed his friend Lanphier when, early in 1859,|
the Illinois legislature re-elected him to the Senate: "Let the1
voice of the people rule.” We have also the Douglas who, in!
that very moment, profited from a bad apportionment which;
defeated the voice of the people. We have the Douglas who
demanded that popular sovereignty control every step in set-
tling the affairs of empty Kansas; we also have the Douglas
who was for annexing populous Cuba without consulting the
will of her people at all. We have the Douglas who played into
the hands of proslavery extremists in his Kansas-Nebraska bill

ALLAN NEVINS

389

of 1854, and who defied the proslavery extremists in his battle
against Lecompton in 1858.

Is it true that, save in love for the Union and interest in
Western expansion, we look in vain for a unifying principle in
Douglas’ public career? Is it true that, save in ambition, we
seek in vain for a binding cord in his personal life?

He is the harder to understand because he never took
pains to reveal himself. If ever a man was an extrovert, a be-
liever in action, it was Douglas; if ever a man was a practised,
fluent speaker, it was Douglas. He was not secretive like Polk,

; who did not confide even in his Cabinet members ; he was not
speechless like Buchanan, who spent ten years in the Senate
without saying anything worth hearing; he was not empty like
Ben Wade. But he signally lacked the trait of self-revelation.
Students of his life become exasperated by the paucity of let-
ters from his pen. We might suppose that from Washington
the Senator would write frequently to his close friend James
W. Sheahan, editor of the Chicago Times, and to Charles H.
Lanphier, editor of the Illinois State Register. Actually his
epistles to them are few, hurried, and full of political direc-
tions to the exclusion of news, ideas, or personal feeling.
Sheahan, indeed, has placed on record his sense of frustration
because Douglas wrote to him so rarely. Even when, in I860,
the impoverished Irish- American lost his newspaper to Cyrus
H. McCormick and walked out into the world penniless, he
received no sympathetic letter from the captain he had served
so devotedly. To be sure, Douglas then had his own financial
difficulties; but Sheahan expressed a bitter sense of grievance.

Douglas was eminently a son of the frontier. Brandon,
Vermont, was a frontier town when he was born there in 1813 ;
'Canandaigua, New York, had scarcely emerged from its fron-
tier character when he went there in 1830; and western Illinois

jwas a fringe of civilization when he first reached it. Like so
Inany self-made sons of the frontier, Douglas was always
itrenously busy; and this might seem the key to his silence

390

STEPHEN A. DOUGLAS

upon his personal life, his ideas and emotions. A man inces-
santly active in politics, business, Congressional work, and
masculine society, he never found time to express his inner
self in letters or diary. Hurry, however, is an insufficient expla-
nation. Other hurried men, like Theodore Roosevelt, have re-
vealed themselves in thousands of frank letters. Something was
lacking in Douglas’ nature, some element of inner richness.
Essentially uncultivated in everything except politics, he was}
also essentially an unreflective, unphilosophical man, who
thought only of propulsive forces.

It is impossible to study his career in detail without a|i
sense that the animating principle of his character was a fierce
practicality. He wished to get things done, and get them done;
in the most direct fashion, leaving ultimate consequences
alone; trusting to fortune that, as Banquo said of Macbeth’sj
murder, the act would "trammel up the consequence and catch
success.” No man was ever quicker to take practical advantage
of any situation, and few leaders have been more careless of!
the long look ahead.

A year ago I paid a visit to the village of Winchester, neat
the Illinois River, where he began his career. In the pleasant;
village square is a well-executed statue of Douglas, showing
not the stripling who came to Winchester, but a mature man:
seated in his senatorial chair, the posture making the most of
his great head and massive chest, and minimizing his shorl
limbs. In that village were lawyers who loved to recall hov
the youth, with long curling hair, glowing blue eyes, and com
bative chin, all energy and ambition, had arrived in 1833, with
just three bits in his pocket; how after earning $2.50 as auctior
clerk he had opened a school with forty pupils at $3.00 apiece
how he had boldly debated with a Jacksonville attorney on the
merits of Jackson’s administration; and how, when he did noi
know "enough law to write out a declaration,” he had per
suaded an indulgent judge to give him a license, and hung up
his shingle in the Morgan County courthouse. Six weeks shorl

ALLAN NEVINS

391

of twenty-one, he was embarked in life. And, seeing that Jack-
sonville could give him few cases, he immediately took politics
as his main profession.

Seldom has a man more quickly mastered his profession.
He shook off his Eastern dress, manners, and speech for blue
jeans, rough ways, and frontier vocabulary. He cultivated
• stump oratory with such effect that at twenty-one he had gained
his name of the Little Giant. He made the most of Jacksonian
control of the legislature by hurrying to Vandalia, helping put
through a bill which displaced the Whig then serving as
? state’s attorney in the Jacksonville district, and getting himself
; named to the place. The very judge who had given him his
license declared: "He is no lawyer and has no lawbooks.” But
with a borrowed horse, a borrowed volume on criminal law,
j and unlimited self-confidence, he set out to prosecute the cases
in his district.

Plainly, he was a youngster who knew how to improvise;
and a brilliant improviser he remained all his life. A youth of
> different temperament would have tarried in Canandaigua,
[where he had attended an academy and first looked into law-
books; would have perfected his education, as Douglas’
mother begged him to do, before going out to conquer fortune.
But Douglas had a headlong ambition. On leaving Canandai-
gua, he told his mother: "In ten years I shall stop by and see
you on my way to Congress.” He was almost better than his
word. In 1837, running for Congress against that John T.
I Stuart who was Lincoln’s first law partner, he came within
thirty-five votes of winning. In 1841 he came within five legis-
lative votes of gaining the senatorship, though a year short of
the required age. In 1843, ten years after reaching Winchester,
'he was elected to Congress.

He had given these ten years to politics, not to law, to
| reading, or to any other more intellectual pursuit. He had
'worked in caucuses and conventions. He had spoken from the
j stump. He had treated voters at the liquor-counter of country

392

STEPHEN A. DOUGLAS

stores. If he ever looked into any books, an old-time friend
testified later, it was into legal commentaries, the Congres-
sional Globe, and political handbooks, of which he became
such a master that soon after entering the House he startled
everybody by correcting the omniscient John Quincy Adams on
a point of fact. His lack of general cultivation was to come
out painfully in such episodes as his debate with Senator
Butler of South Carolina in March, 1853. Butler, an old-school
gentleman who was fond of his well-stocked library, pro-
nounced a eulogy upon British literature and British states-
manship, explaining how much America owed to both. Doug-
las swept all this away with contemptuous impatience. Eu-
ropean literature to him was mere useless lumber; European;
statesmanship he summed up in the single word "tyranny.”

He did gain one titular distinction in these ten years of;
political training. He helped to push a bill through the Demo-
cratic legislature for a partisan reorganization of the State;
Supreme Court — a fact which the Republicans remembered:
when in 1857, after the Dred Scott decision, they talked of,
reorganizing the Federal Supreme Court; and he was ap-
pointed to one of the five judgeships. "Judge” Douglas he wasj I
called all his life, though he quickly left the uncongenial
bench. Later he spoke of his brief term as one of "my youthful
indiscretions.” The "Judge” had only a hedge-lawyer ’s knowl-j
edge of the statutes and no real grasp of jurisprudence. What
matter ? His brilliant improvisation had been successful. It con-
tinued to succeed, for in 1847 he entered the Senate.

Forward, forward! Hurry, hurry! Improvise, improvise!
These were Douglas’ mottoes. Such watchwords suited the
crude, fast-growing West, the young Illinois. He had imbibed
the pushing, inventive spirit of the restless Mississippi Valley.
When he went back to Middlebury College to take an honor-
ary degree, he first thanked the donors and then took them
aback with the frank statement: "My friends, Vermont is the
most glorious spot on the face of this earth for a man to be

ALLAN NEVINS

393

born in, provided he emigrates when he is very young.” To
the crowd at Jonesboro, Illinois, in his debate with Lincoln,
he declared with a touch of self-complacency:

I came out here when I was a boy, and found my mind liberalized and
my opinions enlarged when I got on these broad prairies, with only the
heavens to bound my vision, instead of having them circumscribed by the
: little narrow ridges that surrounded the valley where I was born.

What he meant was that in coming West he had dropped
caution, precision, and a painful effort at foresight; he had
exchanged them for a rough self-reliance, a heedless opti-
mism, a faith in his star, and a trust that the future would
catch up with any bold, forward step. It was natural for him
to become a Democrat of the Jackson-Polk school. The Whig
Party, the organization of Clay and his balanced American
System, was the party of conservatism, moderation, and plan-
ning; the Democrats were the party of energy, confidence in
the popular impulse, and spirited action.

It was part of the headlong practicality of the man, born
of a union between his brilliant precocity and his rude West-
ern environment, that he was as deficient in general ideas of an
abstract kind as he was fertile in working devices. He had little
of the power of subjective thought exhibited by Hamilton,
Madison, or Calhoun. I have read scores of his speeches with-
out finding a single statement or idea (apart from the very
practical idea of popular sovereignty) that could be torn from
its context and set up as a principle. He was irresistible in de-
['bate; but he was totally incapable of writing a true state paper,
j When once in his life, in 1859, he undertook to prepare an
I essay of scholarly character presenting some generalized argu-
| ments to the country — his famous exposition of popular sov-
ereignty in Harper’s Magazine — all life departed from his pen,
and he became incredibly labored, pedantic, and dull. His de-
ficiency in this respect becomes most evident when we compare
I'bim for a moment with Lincoln.

Douglas was a great democrat, a natural man of the peo-

394

STEPHEN A. DOUGLAS

pie; but he was not a democrat in the reflective sense in which
Lincoln was one. Why can we never conceive of Douglas as !
making such a remark as Lincoln’s famous epigram: "God
must have loved the common people, because he made so many
of them”? For two reasons, I think. The first is that to make
such a remark requires a certain detachment. Lincoln, when
he uttered it, was standing apart from the plain people, sur-
veying them, and musing upon their relation to Providence.
Douglas, however, never stood apart from the crowd; he was:
always in the thick of it, sharing its emotions, calculating on
its movements. Lincoln’s remark carried an implication that:
he was not quite one of the plain people, but was studying:
them from an outer, though sympathetic, vantage point. Doug-,
las never for a moment thought of himself except as one of
the democratic mass. The second reason is that Lincoln’s re-
mark states a rebuke to the aristocrats of this world with a;
philosophic kindliness of which Douglas was incapable. Lin-,
coin’s epigram must seem biting to all those who despise the
masses — to H. L. Mencken, for example, talking contemptu-:
ously of booboisie. In fact, it is devastating. Yet it is humorous,,
inoffensive, even ingratiating. Douglas would have found this!
philosophic good humor impossible. His approach to the aris-
tocrats would have been combative: "Think yourself better
than us common folk, do you? Well, you silk-stocking scoun-j
drels, you’re not” — and then a stream of invective.

Douglas’ lack of reflective and philosophical qualities
come out in other relationships. It is shown, for example, in
the almost complete lack of wit and humor in the man; for
humor is impossible without a philosophical sense of thej|
bizarre relationships of life. Lincoln saw humor in everything.
But Douglas told few stories, coined no epigrams, and never
delivered a Will Rogers thrust. His only form of humor was
the belligerent form — sarcasm. I have found just one pun in
his speeches. In his attack on Jefferson Davis in the Senate
after the Charleston Convention in I860, he harked back to the

ALLAN NEVINS

395

old battle of 1850 in Mississippi, when Davis and Henry S.
Foote ran for Senator with acceptance or rejection of Clay’s
Compromise as the issue between them, and Davis was de-
feated. Mississippi, said Douglas, put her Foote on Davis. He
could poke fun at Lincoln for his clerkship in a country store.
He could put Senator Bayard in his place by a jest at the tiny
size of Delaware. But of the broad fun and humor of the West,
so delightful in Tom Corwin, so lambent at times in the
speeches even of Thomas Hart Benton, he had very little.

His idea of national union, too, was less philosophical
:han Lincoln’s or Lyman Trumbull’s. His concept of the Union
was Jacksonian, while Lincoln’s concept was Websterian. That
s, Douglas saw the Union in a practical light; it was the Union
which developed the country, guarded the frontiers, kept the
Mississippi open to the mouth, and used its strong arm to an-
nex new territory for the swarming American millions. Lin-
:oln’s idea of the Union embraced this and a good deal more.
He, like Webster, thrilled to the Union with an intense spirit
|)f nationality, a passionate attachment to the republic as a
vhole, and a conviction that the people must stand as a unit in
lefense of freedom. If the Union died, liberty died with it.
They were "one and inseparable.”

The fact was that Douglas supplied the place of abstract
i [deas, of such carefully pondered principles as had been laid
lown by Hamilton and Jefferson, Calhoun and Clay, with
hree or four broad emotional beliefs. One was his unreflect-
ug, undiscriminating, ill-defined faith in the popular will.
)ne was his belief in national growth: the growth, he said,
/hich having burst through the Indian country, crossed the
Lockies and Sierras, and come to a halt on the Pacific, must
len turn either north to Canada or south to Mexico. A third
motional belief grew out of his optimism respecting America,
le thought the future of the republic unbounded. Europe, he
nee declaimed, is "one vast graveyard,” and her legislation
lust suit that condition. " Here everything is fresh, blooming,

396

STEPHEN A. DOUGLAS

expanding, and advancing. We wish a wise, practical polic}
adapted to our condition and position.”

We have said that a headlong practicality, a gift for bril-
liant improvisation, was the chief animating force of hi? I
career. It was united with another ruling trait, his belligerence \
He was born with a love of battle. He reminds us of Dr. Johri
Brown’s story of the Scottish farmer and his dour mastiff I
"Why is your dog so sad and grim?” they asked the farmer i
"Eh, sir!” he said, "life is full of sairiousness to him; he car
just never get enough of fightin!” Douglas had none of th<j
urbane diplomacy of an Easterner like Seward; he was as fonc
of attack as a stallion of the Western prairies. We have noteci fc
that his first important act after opening his school in Win 1
Chester was to plunge into battle with a neighboring attorney ?
and his first important act after getting admitted to the ba! jj
was to wage a contest in the Vandalia legislature to unseat th< t
district attorney. He kept on fighting. In his joint debate witll
Stuart for Congress, Douglas used such offensive language!
that Stuart picked him up, tucked his head under his arm, and -
dragged him around the Springfield square; Douglas mean
while biting Stuart’s thumb almost in two. When John Quine
Adams first heard the Little Giant speak in Congress, h ^i
thought the Westerner’s ferocity against the Whigs almost in
sane. "His face was convulsed,” wrote Adams in his diary I
"his gesticulation frantic, and he lashed himself into such | t
heat that if his body had been made of combustible matter i 1 1
would have burnt out.” Precisely similar was Carl Schurz’s irrl
pression of him in the Senate — the impression of a grimll
formidable parliamentary pugilist. He looked the incarnatio!
of forceful combativeness, and his speech accorded with hi
looks. Wrote Schurz:

His sentences were clear-cut, direct, positive. They went straight to tl
mark like bullets and sometimes like cannonballs, tearing and crashing. . .
He was utterly unsparing of the feelings of his opponents. . . . He woul
with utter unscrupulousness, malign his opponents’ motives, distort the
sayings, and attribute to them all sorts of iniquitous deeds and purposes.

ALLAN NEVINS

397

Quite so; even the patient Lincoln was nettled by his unfair
tactics.

For an example of his combative skill in blackening the
character of an opponent we may take a passage from his as-
sault on Salmon P. Chase and Charles Sumner in March, 1854.
The Ohio and Massachusetts senators had played their politi-
cal game very much as Douglas had played his. Both had been
elected to the Senate by coalitions. Yet they were assuming a
tone of lofty moral superiority. Douglas used the gladiator’s
?short sword on them, the argumentum ad hominem. "Mr.
■President,” he rasped:

The Senators from Ohio and Massachusetts have taken the liberty to
Itmpeach my motives. ... I desire to know by what right they arraign me. . . .

I [ must be permitted to tell the Senator from Ohio that I did not obtain my
;eat in this body, either by a corrupt bargain or a dishonorable coalition! I
must be permitted to remind the Senator from Massachusetts, that I did not
mter into any combinations or arrangements by which my character, my prin-
:iples, and my honor were set up at public auction or private sale in order
o procure a seat in the Senate of the United States!

This was quite unfair. His imputations of dishonor and corrup-
tion had no basis. But they were signally effective in turning
Chase and Sumner from the offensive to the defensive.

This belligerent temper had its good and its bad sides. It
vas shown at its best in his indomitable pluck. The stout-
hearted Douglas never quailed against any odds. Horace
Greeley wrote a letter to Congressman William Kellogg of the
lanton, Illinois, district early in I860. He wrote that Douglas
rnd he had never agreed but upon one subject: Lecompton.
They were political enemies. "I detest his doctrines,” stated
dreeley, "but I like his pluck.” And with a sly dig at the
Republicans who had endorsed Helper’s Impending Crisis
nd then under attack had repudiated that book, Greeley
dded: "Had he [Douglas] signed, ever so heedlessly, a cir-
ular recommending Tom Paine’s Age of Reason , you would
■ever have found him prevaricating nor apologizing . . .; he
/ould simply and coolly have told his adversaries to make the

398

STEPHEN A. DOUGLAS

most of it.” Everyone admired the Little Giant’s pluck. .A I

ponents, and worsted them all. Who can forget the great scenjl;
on the night of March 3, 1854, when he carried his Kansas!
Nebraska bill through the Senate by an irresistible onslaught .
extorting from his opponent Seward the tribute: "I have neve]
had so much respect for the Senator as I have tonight”?

Another creditable aspect of his combative temper, whic j
only those who have read scores of his speeches can appreciate
lay in his use of oratory as a businesslike, argumentative, faJ
tual weapon. America was afflicted in this period with a spreac
eagle school of speech. Emerson remarked: "The curse of th|
country is eloquent men.” In debate Douglas was like Charle
James Fox: He was intent on convincing, and poured forth b
arguments and facts as a general in battle throws successr
waves of shock troops against a position. He was never flm

ery, never flatulent, never weak; he mastered all political su

jects thoroughly, for they were the sole object of his interest-
and woe betide the man who challenged his knowledge. HI
could tell precisely what had happened in a Congressiona
debate of 1846, or 1852, or 1856. He could state the precis!

a manly, downright elucidation of public issues.

One illustration of his irresistible businesslike readine<|
in debate will suffice. After the Charleston Convention in 186(|
when the Democratic Party split between those who accepte
Douglas’ popular sovereignty platform and those who de
manded a slave-code platform, Jefferson Davis taunted Dou£
las on the Senate floor. The seventeen certainly Democrati
states were for the slave-code platform, he said; but the sixtee,
states which voted for the Douglas platform did not includ
one that was certainly Democratic. In a few crisp sentence

times in his stormy career he faced a whole cohort of angry op

provisions of the enabling act for Wisconsin or Arkansas. HI
could recite offhand the number of states which had levied
tonnage-taxes. Like A1 Smith, he was a walking ency clopedi;
of government, and like Governor Smith, he used this lore i!

ALLAN NEVINS

399

Douglas turned on Davis and crushed him. Maryland had op-
)Osed the Douglas platform at Charleston; was Maryland
urely Democratic? She had voted against Buchanan in 1856.
lennessee had opposed the Douglas platform; was Tennessee
ilways Democratic? She had voted against Pierce in 1852, and
>f her ten Congressmen only three were now Democrats. Ken-
ucky had opposed the Douglas platform; was Kentucky surely
Democratic? She had voted against Pierce in 1852. Illinois had
jiever once failed the Democratic Party in a presidential elec-
ion. Could Jefferson Davis say as much for Mississippi? He
:ould not, for the Whigs had once carried his state. Behind
Douglas’ combativeness lay an arsenal of exact knowledge.

His belligerent temper displayed its worst side in his
Irequent readiness to use any quarrel to gain an unfair advan-
tage. He could be unscrupulous in domestic affairs. He could
be still more unscrupulous in international matters, for he was
.lways a chauvinist, an expansionist, and a narrow-minded
Issailant of foreign peoples. Here again a single illustration
Will suffice for many. In the spring of 1858 the British Navy
[vas accused of aggressions against vessels bearing the Ameri-
can flag. Douglas was foremost in fanning the flame of national
lesentment. He proposed to give President Buchanan power to
punish such outrages instantly and effectively, and declaimed:

While I am opposed to war, while I have no idea of any breach of the
[eace with England, yet I confess to you, sirs, that if war should come by
er act I would administer to every citizen and every child Hannibal’s oath

If eternal hostility as long as the English flag waved or their government
laimed a foot of land upon the American continent or the adjacent islands,
ir, I would make it a war that would settle our disputes forever, not only
f the right of search upon the seas, but the right to tread with hostile foot
pon the soil of the American continent.

This is in the best vein of Jefferson Brick. We might dismiss
t as rodomontade, but its offense lies deeper. What was the
•utrage committed by the British Navy? The boarding, off
Vfrica or Cuba, of vessels flying the American flag but looking
nuch like slave ships — which they sometimes were. Douglas

400

STEPHEN A. DOUGLAS

was willing to use this minor controversy for seizing Canada,
the British West Indies, and Belize; just as he was ready to
use any chance quarrel with Spain to seize Cuba.

The great danger incurred by the practical politician who
rushes headlong into improvisation is this, that he oversimpli-
fies the problems he faces. The great danger in habitual belli-
cosity is that it soon builds up an iron wall of enemies. Doug-
las had many engaging traits. His personal magnetism was
almost irresistible. His loyalty to his friends, including the
erratic James Shields and the wily Robert J. Walker, was ad-
mirable. He remembered everyone around him by name, and
gave the humblest follower the feeling that he had in Douglas
a personal champion. He delighted in every opportunity of
mingling with human beings; in campaign trips, speeches, and
caucuses, in dinners, receptions, and parties. He could stay up
all night with good fellows in a railroad car, as George B.
McClellan relates, and yet be ready in debate and punctual in
business the next day. While always anxious to make money
by speculation, he could be prodigally generous of funds for
an associate or a cause. On great occasions he could be mag-
nanimous. His telegram in 1856 urging his followers in the
Cincinnati Convention to turn to Buchanan was written the
moment he heard that Buchanan had a majority vote, and was
a bright episode in the history of a party repeatedly divided by
the two-thirds rule.

But his twin traits of impetuous improvisation and reck-
less belligerency were destined in the end to blot his claim to
the rank of statesman, and to place him in a position where he
had to make a mighty effort to recover his prestige. That he did
make this effort and did re-establish his fame, there can happily
be no doubt.

We find these traits exhibited in four critical events of his
career. The first was his rash attempt for the Presidential nomi-
nation in 1852, which ended in bitterness and humiliation.
The second was the Kansas-Nebraska struggle of 1854, the un-

ALLAN NEVINS

401

happiest Pandora’s box in our history. The third was the battle
over the Lecompton Constitution, which would have brought
Kansas into the Union as slave soil. The fourth was the re-
newed struggle for the Presidency in I860, with his final im-
placable contest against the Southern wing of the party. Three
pf these four contests shook the country and affected its
destiny. The first two wore a dubious look. In the latter two
he fought for principle and for personal amibition at the same
time, and while his critics have laid stress on his ambition, his
admirers have more justly emphasized his principles. In all
four contests his essential characteristics were dramatically
exhibited.

The attempt to vault into the White House was a serio-
comic episode significant only in the humiliation it visited
upon Douglas and the foundation it laid for Southern hostility.
Had he been elected that year, he would have been President at
jthirty-nine, much the youngest man who has ever held the
pffice. Thoughts of youth and inexperience never troubled him.
,Was he not the leader of Young America? Francis J. Grund
wrote, "Douglas is going it with a rush"; and "rush" was just
:he word for his pre-convention campaign. For some months
die believed that what he called "The Ticket," consisting of
jhimself and R. M. T. Hunter of Virginia, would win the day.
Actually the circumstances foreordained defeat, which any
political veteran could have predicted. What hurt Douglas’
'feelings, in the end, was not that the Democratic Convention
, swiftly passed him over in favor of Franklin Pierce; it was the
jcontempt and dislike which many Southern leaders expressed
for him. Aristocratic, conservative Southerners of the old
school, men like William R. King, Howell Cobb, and A. P.
Butler, were scornful of Douglas’ brash impetuosity. If he
were nominated, wrote John Slidell of Louisiana, "I should
despair of the republic." His election, said Senator King,
would be an invitation to "every vulture that would prey upon
:he public carcass." "If we had named him," wrote Cave

402

STEPHEN A. DOUGLAS

Johnson when all was over, "we would have been dishonored
and disgraced.”

When we turn to the Kansas-Nebraska Act, we turn to
one of the most complicated and controversial chapters in
American history. We turn also to the supreme illustration of
Douglas’ tendency to gain an immediate practical end by im- ,
pulsive improvisation. No error in historical interpretation is
more frequent than the attempt to rationalize every great pub-
lict act, attributing it to reason and design. In his classic book, j i
Human Nature in Politics , Graham Wallas points out that; j
perhaps the greater part of political conduct is irrational; that
it springs not from cool calculation of means and ends, but i
from impulses and instincts representing temporary emotion,
environmental determinism, and other factors. To say that:
Douglas in 1854 carefully planned the Kansas-Nebraska Act
is to do injustice both to the complexity of the situation and ; i
to his headlong impulsiveness.

Insofar as he acted on rational, well-considered grounds, I
he doubtless acted from a multiplicity of motives. He was ! |
aware that his friend Senator Atchison of Missouri had to be |
rescued from a sad political plight. He was aware that Chicago j j
would never forgive him if New Orleans or Memphis gained
a Pacific railroad and the lake city did not. He wished to push j
himself boldly forward as a national leader. He recalled that l
he had solved the difficult problem of organizing New Mexico ; i
Territory by using the popular sovereignty formula. He wished i
to add to his proud record as the principal leader of Congress :
in opening the West to settlement. He was keenly conscious j j
that Pierce’s administration was tottering and discredited, and !
that a strong policy was needed to rescue the party from disas- j .
trous squabbles. A mind so alert and sinewy as Douglas’ would
appreciate not merely one or two but all of these factors. It
is difficult to believe that the railroad situation explained his
bill. He was pressing for three transcontinental railroads,
which would satisfy all sections; as chairman of the railroad

ALLAN NEVINS

403

committee he was in a position to block undesired legislation;
and his bill actually delayed a Pacific railroad. The need for
some strong new policy to unite the country was probably up-
permost in his mind.

So much for the rational element in his action. It seems
likely, however, that a semi-irrational impulse was more po-
tent. A practical situation confronted him. His instinct was to
improvise. To deal with the Kansas-Nebraska country in a way
satisfying to both Northerners and Southerners was difficult;
he saw what looked like a feasible solution, and without sec-
ond thought leaped forward to apply it. His brilliant improvi-
sations had always worked in the past. The mere force of
Western growth would make this one work. That he acted
on heedless impulse is indicated by the fact that his moment-
ous bill passed through three stages before taking final form.
As first introduced, it merely stated that new Nebraska Terri-
:ory should ultimately be admitted as a state with or without
,lavery as its constitution might prescribe. Then it was
amended to declare that, pending statehood, all questions per-
aining to slavery should be left to the people. Finally it was
again amended to include an explicit repeal of the Missouri
lompromise restriction against slavery. Plainly, Douglas had
:eaped into the situation without real forethought about his
iltimate goal. He had taken a first hurried step. Then a group
>f Southerners pushed him to a second, more drastic step. Then
Till another Southerner, Dixon of Kentucky, pushed him to
he third step. His first leap had seemed safe enough, but its
jaomentum carried him forward to ground that quaked with
anger.

In all American history no more fateful piece of headlong
nprovisation can be found than this Kansas-Nebraska bill,
before he introduced it the slavery question had been settled
3r every inch of American territory. Under the compromises
f 1820 and 1850 not a rod of ground was in dispute. This
impetuous measure opened up two mighty quarrels. One, be-

404

STEPHEN A. DOUGLAS

tween Northern free-soilers and Southern proslavery men, was
bad enough. The other, between Northern Democrats who.
held that popular sovereignty applied at once, and Southern
Democrats who held that it applied only when a state asked
for admission, was much worse. Both quarrels were latent in
the time. Douglas had called them to life.

Douglas had meant to unify his party and lead it triumph-
antly against its foes. Instead, he spent the rest of his life lead-
ing the Northwestern faction of the party against the Southern
faction. He could not accept the Southern interpretation of his
law, that slavery must be allowed free access to a territory
even against the will of its people until it became a state.
He could not accept the Dred Scott decision which wrote that
interpretation into the Constitution. He could not accept the
policies of President Buchanan when that executive, controlled
by Slidell, Howell Cobb, and other Southerners, lent himself :
to the Southern interpretation. In a sense, Douglas spent his
final years battling for his one broad, hazy principle — the prin-
ciple that the people who go to dwell in a given area should'
determine its institutions. It was not so sound a principle as :
Lincoln’s doctrine that national morality and national health ■
called for the containment of slavery within its existing j
bounds, but it might nevertheless be termed a principle. In an-
other sense, Douglas spent his last years expiating his rashness, rj
in overthrowing an honest, workable compromise in favor of j
one that proved ambiguous and unworkable; and expiating i
the bellicosity which had raised up a host of personal enemies.:

If we think of the battle for principle, Douglas in 1858j (j
appears in a heroic role. A group of Southern leaders, incited;
by an angry Southern press, were determined to bring in: $
Kansas as the sixteenth slave state. They seized upon the most t
dishonestly written state constitution in American annals, the
so-called Lecompton Constitution, a child of fraud and vio- •
lence. They browbeat President Buchanan into assenting to
this consitution. Instantly, as the session of 1857-1858 opened,

ALLAN NEVINS

405

Douglas was in arms. His struggle against Lecompton was an
exhibition of iron determination. The drama of that battle has
given it an almost unique place in the record of American party
controversies.

"By God, sir!” he exclaimed, "I made James Buchanan,
and by God, sir, I will unmake him!” Friends told him that
the Southern Democrats meant to ruin him. "I have taken a
through ticket,” rejoined Douglas, "and checked my baggage.”
His retort to Buchanan when the President reminded him how
Jackson had crushed two party rebels is famous. Douglas was
not to be overawed by a man whom he regarded as a pygmy.
"Mr. President,” he snorted, "I wish you to remember that
• General Jackson is dead.” Less well known is his sarcastic re-
joinder to that doughface member of Buchanan’s cabinet,
Isaac Toucey. When Toucey said that a battle between Doug-
■ las and the administration might cripple the party for a genera-
tion, the Senator declared this true. "Why, my dear sir,” cried
Toucey, delightedly, "you agree with me in everything — I
don’t see how we can disagree at all.” "Certainly not,” said
Douglas with ironic tartness. "We can’t disagree, Mr. Toucey;
it’s impossible; for you are always right on a constitutional
question, and while the Constitution declares that Congress
:may admit new states, it hasn’t a word in it about the Cabinet
-admitting them.”

As for the Southern leaders, Douglas’ scorn of the extrem-
ists was unbounded. He told the Washington correspondent of
khe Chicago Journal that he had begun his fight as a contest
against a single measure. But a blow at Lecompton was a blow
j against slavery, and he at once had the whole "slave power”

: down on him like a pack of wolves. He added:

In making the fight against this power, I was enabled to stand off and
i view the men with whom I had been acting; that I was ashamed I had ever
jDeen caught in such company; they were a set of unprincipled demagogues,
: pent upon perpetuating slavery, and by the exercise of that unequal and unfair
(power, to control the Government or break up the Union; and I intend to
I 3revent their doing either.

H j=!

406

ALLAN NEVINS

407

It was a heroic battle; a battle, too, which Douglas gal-
lantly won, for Lecompton was defeated. And yet did not the
whole Kansas struggle have a deeper significance? As the
country looked back on it, did it not teach a painful lesson of
the gross miscalculation involved in the Kansas-Nebraska Act?
That measure, which Douglas had said would quiet sectional
antagonisms, had increased them. That enactment, which he
had declared would furnish a relatively quick, automatic, and
natural solution of the slavery issue, had produced delays,
artificial interventions, and endless broils. That bill, presented
as an embodiment of justice, had fostered fraud, dishonesty,
and outrage. The shining role of Douglas in the final act could
not conceal the fact that it would have been far better for
Kansas, for the Democratic Party, for the South, and for the
nation, had he insisted in 1854 on respecting the Missouri
Compromise. For much that had occurred he could not be
blamed. But he could be blamed for not foreseeing that false
hopes of a new slave state would be aroused in the South, that
1 the North would be filled with a sense of betrayal, that angry
conflicts would ensue on the Western plains, and that govern-
; ors and presidents would be subjected to pressures under
• which they would bend.

All conventional treatments of Douglas describe as the
final glorious phase of his career the months in which, as seces-
j sion and civil war came, he threw himself with impetuous
ardor into the cause of the Union. He pledged Lincoln the
support of the Union Democrats; he would have made the first
I call for troops 150,000 men instead of 75,000. But it is not his
| position in the spring of 1861, fine as it was, which most de-
9 serves praise. After all, every truehearted Northerner after
' Fort Sumter was fired with patriotic ardor. I find the most
: splendid chapter of his iife elsewhere.

It lies in the course he pursued in the last months of the
, presidential campaign of I860. Douglas began that campaign
! with some hope of being elected. By midsummer he knew that

408

STEPHEN A. DOUGLAS

these hopes were vain; that the four-cornered election could
not even be thrown into the House; that Lincoln’s victory was
certain. His health was precarious, and his personal fortunes
were at low ebb — he was almost bankrupt. Any less deter-
mined fighter would have given up and retired to his home.
Douglas could have done so without criticism, for not one of
the other candidates, Lincoln, Breckinridge, and Bell, under-
took a vigorous canvass. But he believed that the Union was
in danger. Meeting Senator Henry Wilson in Boston early in
August, he predicted Lincoln’s election, and declared that he
was resolved to go South to urge the people to submit to the
result and sustain the government. He was as good as his word.
Traveling into slaveholding territory, he exhibited moral
courage of the rarest kind by denouncing secession and warn- ;
ing Southerners that if it came it would be met with force.

At Norfolk he told a crowd of seven thousand that no
Southern state would be justified in seceding if Lincoln were
elected. He also told the crowd that it was the duty of the gov-
ernment to enforce the laws and preserve the Constitution. He
himself would do everything in his power to maintain both;
and he believed that the next President, whoever he might be, i
"should treat all attempts to break up the Union ... as Old
Hickory treated the Nullifiers in 1832.” At Raleigh, he usedj
even stronger language. "I would hang every man higher than;
Haman,” he said, "who would attempt to resist by force the
execution of any provision of the Constitution which our
fathers made and bequeathed to us.” At Raleigh he also told
the South that the men of the Northwest would never let the
lower Mississippi pass into the hands of a foreign country;
before they did that, they would follow the waters of the Illi-
nois with the bayonet down to the Gulf. Returning North to
New York, he declared that all true Democrats must join in
enforcing the laws against seceders. "I wish to God,” he vocif-
erated, "that we had an Old Hickory now alive that he might
hang Northern and Southern traitors on the same gallows.”

ALLAN NEVINS

409

This was a brave stand, for most Democratic politicians
were silent on the issue of secession. It was more — it was a
farsighted stand, for most Republican leaders, including Lin-
coln, were scoffing at the idea that secession would come, while
many leaders in all parties were denying that secession would
be followed by war. While such Republicans as Greeley would
let the Southern states go in peace, ex-President Franklin
Pierce was writing Jefferson Davis that any Northern army
which tried to march against the South would have to fight its
first desperate battle at home in the North.

Douglas’ greatest single service to his country was this
gallant effort to recall the South, as Lincoln’s election became
certain, to its duty in the Union; this bold attempt to warn
Southerners that any secession would mean Northern coercion
and war. In that late summer of I860 he loomed up as incom-
parably the bravest, wisest, and most candid statesman in the
land.

It would be difficult to find a contrast more striking than
1 that between the scenes in which Lincoln and Douglas spent
I election night in I860. Lincoln, surrounded by elated, cheer-
. ing crowds, went from the oldStatehouse to the telegraph office
: in Springfield. The little capital had never heard such a roar
as went up when the news came: "New York fifty thousand
[ for Lincoln!’’ Cannon boomed; men and women joined in
j, songs of victory. Douglas spent the evening in Mobile, at the
■ office of the Mobile Register. To the last he had pointed to the
danger of disunion and the certainty that disunion would in-
| augurate a bloody war. As dispatches came in pointing to
! Lincoln’s victory, Douglas sat in growing gloom; not because
his friend Honest Abe had been elected, but because he had
become convinced, as he toured the South, that a great seces-
sionist conspiracy was approaching its climax. The editor of
j the Register , Forsyth, tried to cheer him. He showed Douglas
I an editorial calling for a state convention to discuss Alabama’s
\ policy in the crisis. The best course for Union men here, he

410

STEPHEN A. DOUGLAS

said, would be to accept the general demand for a state con-
vention, elect as many delegates as possible, and divert the
proceedings into safe channels. Douglas roused himself like
a lion. You are wrong, he said. If you Union men cannot pre-
vent a convention, then you can’t control the convention once
it meets. But Forsyth insisted on printing the editorial. And as
Douglas walked back to his hotel through the desolate streets,
his secretary noticed that he was "more hopeless than I had
ever before seen him.”

He was hopeless because he saw into the future; saw dis-
union and battle just ahead. Hard experience had at last taught
him prevision. If we ask which of that night’s figures seems the
more heroic, Lincoln or Douglas, we must answer Douglas.

Is it not true that a great deal of the spirit of Illinois his-
tory in its long formative period is concentrated in the career! i
of Stephen A. Douglas? Here is the hurry, the strenuosity, ^
which were necessities in the pioneer era. Here is the head-
long improvisation which was natural when men had to con-
quer great difficulties with little more than their bare hands. (I
Hurry, hurry! — Improvise, improvise! — these were natural
watchwords in a young state. Here, too, is the reliance upon
rapid material growth to atone for all the defects of rash im-: ft
provisation. Our American democracy, East as well as West,il
has trusted much to improvisation, from the time when the! L
Fathers improvised the Articles of Confederation to the day |
when Franklin D. Roosevelt improvised the NR A; in both in-
stances with somewhat unhappy results.

Today, Illinois, like other parts of the Union, must lay:
more emphasis on planning. We must depend more on scien-
tific calculations and the long look ahead. But in an age of[
planning, we can still preserve some of Douglas’ great virtues!
— his unfailing pluck, his combativeness in great causes, his;
willingness to spend all his strength in the public service, his
scorn of sectional as distinguished from national objects, and
his unquenchable patriotism.

SLAVERY AND NEGRO
IN POPE COUNTY,

SERVITUDE

LLINOIS

BY JOHN W. ALLEN

A GREAT deal of interesting information lies unnoted in
Lj_the county records of southern Illinois. In searching for
iata concerning the history of various counties, the author has
ound numerous references to slavery and to other forms of
Negro servitude in this section of the state. The most valuable
affirmation is, of course, to be found in the records of the
lder counties. For instance, the first four deed books of Pope
bounty contain many recordings concerning Negro slaves and
srvants. A part of the information gathered from these books
> presented here in the belief that it will prove helpful to those
iterested in the history of slavery in southern Illinois, for the
'ope County records are typical of those in other older coun-
es of this part of the state.

These records reveal that the practices relating to slavery
nd Negro servitude in southern Illinois did not conform to
le statutes enacted for their regulation. It is also evident that
ublic officials were aware of the inconsistency and even par-

John W. Allen is curator of history and acting director of the
museum at Southern Illinois University , Carbondale. Born in Ham-
ilton County, Illinois, he has had a lifelong interest in local history
and pioneer crafts and culture. After serving in the Marine Corps
in World War I he attended the University of London and later
was a public school teacher and superintendent of schools for many
years. His writings have appeared in various newspapers and in Ran-
dolph County Notes, Jackson County Notes, Our Museum, and Pope
County Notes.

411

412

SLAVERY IN POPE COUNTY

ticipated in the evasions. Before presenting the informatior
from Pope County, it might be well to review briefly the gen
eral history of slavery in Illinois — with such an outline iiij
mind, the Pope County story may be better understood.

It seems that the first Negro slaves of Illinois were those
brought from San Domingo by Philippe Francois Renault
Several hundred of these people reached Illinois about 17204
perhaps in the latter part of 1719. Some of them were used id
Renault’s mining ventures in northwestern Illinois and in Mis; :
souri. Others were used in farming operations about the now
vanished village of St. Philippe in Monroe County. In addi
tion to the imported slaves, a number of Indians were alscJ
held in bondage. However, the total number of slaves in thd i
territory seems to have shown little increase after 1720. Ac
cording to the Jesuit Relations, records of missions establishec
by the Jesuits, there were only 300 Negroes and 60 Indian.! i
held as slaves in Illinois in 1750.

In 1763 when this territory was ceded to the English, thi \
latter did not interfere with the practice of slavery. Hence tj
when it came into the possession of Virginia at the end of the 1
Revolutionary War, nothing was done to restrict the existing ;j
practice. When Virginia ceded the territory to the newlyi
formed federal government, the French, Canadians, and othe
inhabitants of Kaskaskia, with those of other villages in the
territory, assumed that they would be allowed to retain thei
properties and "ancient privileges.” The Ordinance of 178'
provided that there should be no slavery nor involuntary servii
tude "otherwise than in the punishment of crime, whereof th<i
party shall have been duly convicted.” However, Governo 1
Arthur St. Clair, of the Northwest Territory, and Governo!
William Henry Harrison, of the Indiana Territory, maintainec
that this did not affect slaves held prior to 1787, and bofi
agreed that additional slaves could not be brought in. The hv
barring the introduction of more slaves was evaded by in
denturing Negroes brought in after the ban had been placed

JOHN W. ALLEN

413

Indiana Territory, of which Illinois was then a part, legal-
ized this practice by action of the Governing Council and by
action of the Territorial Legislature, in 1803, 1805, and 1807.
By these acts it was legally permissible to indenture Negro
males up to thirty-live and Negro females up to thirty-two
years, though indentures were generally for longer terms, on
some occasions for as long as ninety-nine years. These regula-
tions were adopted by Illinois Territory upon its separation
from Indiana in 1809.

The Illinois Constitution of 1818 forbade slavery, but it did
not specifically regulate against the slavery already established.
To evade this provision of the new constitution, the practice of
indenturing was continued, but it was legal to indenture a
-servant for only one year. In some instances the constitutional
provision against slavery was simply ignored. Children born
to an indentured Negro woman could be indentured, the boys
until they were twenty-one years old, and girls until they were
eighteen. Indentures already in force were not interfered with
in any way. Few paid heed to this limit of time.

The legislature of the new state, in March, 1819, re-en-
acted the principles of the earlier territorial laws. These laws
passed by the first General Assembly became known as the
'Black Laws.” Under the provisions of this act, a Negro could
Aot become a resident of the state unless he had a certificate
pf freedom from a court of record. Without such a certificate
She Negro could be sold for one year. Should he have the re-
pired certificate and be admitted to the state, he still could
lot bring suit, testify in court when a white person was con-
cerned, or vote; nor could he travel except in very restricted
ireas. The whole plan seems to have been intended to drive
ree Negroes into voluntary indenture. The Negro’s plight
vas indeed a sorry one.

Travelers crossing the state with their slaves and other
property often expressed a desire to settle here, but some hesi-
ated to do so because of the ban on slavery. This situation led

414

SLAVERY IN POPE COUNTY

those citizens of Illinois who favored slavery to demand a con-
vention to amend the state constitution and make slavery legal.
A vote for such a convention was authorized by the legislature
in 1823. In the general election that followed, August 2, 1824,
there were 4,972 votes cast for a convention (for slavery) and
6,640 cast against a convention (against slavery) . Pope County
cast 273 votes for and 124 against.

This election did not end slavery in Illinois. In some coun-
ties, principally in the southern part of the state, indentured;
servants and slaves were held after 1824. This is shown by
numerous certificates of freedom executed after that date.
Though the institution of slavery was definitely disappearing,
the general attitude toward the Negro could hardly be termed
favorable.

In 1862 the people of Illinois voted, by a majority of
107,650, to refuse admission to Negroes. At the same time they
voted by a majority of 176,271 to prohibit Negroes from vot-
ing or holding office. In 1862, a Negro in Hancock County was!
arrested for being in the state ten days and intending to remain
permanently. He was found guilty and fined. Interested citi-
zens appealed his case to the State Supreme Court, which in;
1864 upheld the verdict of the lower court.

Such incidents as these perhaps more clearly reveal the
general feeling toward Negroes than does the fact that the;
legislative acts of 1865 ratified the Thirteenth, Fourteenth, and
Fifteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution and
repealed the "Black Laws" of 1819 and similar ones enacted
in 1853.

The foregoing brief outline of the general history of
slavery and the treatment of Negroes in Illinois furnishes a
background for a more detailed study of Negro servitude in
Pope County. The first entry concerning a Negro servant in
the records at Golconda is a document filed on June 25, 1816
about six months after the formation of the county. By this
indenture, Silvey, a Negro woman about twenty-four years of

JOHN W. ALLEN

415

age, on June 22, 1815, bound herself to serve John Morris of
Gallatin County, then including portions of Pope, "for a term
of forty years next ensuing.”1 Silvey received "$400.00, in
hand, paid, receipt of which is hereby acknowledged.” She
was also to receive "good and sufficient meat, drink, lodging
and apparel together with all other needful conveniences fit
for such a servant.” Silvey pledged herself to "faithfully serve,
obey, not absent herself from her work, and to not embezzle
or waist \sic] her master’s property.” With this indenture, a
bond was filed, signed by John Morris and one surety, guaran-
teeing that Silvey would not become a public charge of Pope
: County. Except for length of service pledged, this indenture
complied with the law of Illinois Territory at that time. In its
form it is typical of such contracts.

In the majority of indentures recorded, an entry similar
; to the one where Silvey acknowledges the receipt of a certain
;sum of money "in hand, paid, the receipt of which is hereby
[acknowledged” will be found. It is to be seriously doubted
[whether the Negroes actually received the money.

The second entry noted was a "Bill of Bargain and Sale”
[that states, "Know ye all men by these presents that I, Jessie
Jones, of the State of Kentucky and county of Caldwell, have
this day bargained and sold and delivered unto Thomas Fergu-
son of Illinois Territory and County of Johnson, a certain
{Negro Man named Jeffery about thirty years of age, and for
^consideration of the sum of five hundred and twenty-five dol-
lars.”2 This bill of sale was filed in the office of Joshua Scott,
recorder of Pope County, on November 28, 1816. Since this
•document is an outright bill of sale, it did not conform to the
legal requirements of Illinois Territory.

The next entry concerning a servant is an indenture ac-
knowledged before William Greenup, county clerk of Ran-

1 Pope County Deed Record (Golconda, 111.) A, 2.

2 Ibid., 4.

416

SLAVERY IN POPE COUNTY

dolph County, and dated December 17, 18 10. 3 It was not re]
corded in Pope County until November 28, 1816. By this in-
denture, similar in form to the one between John Morris of
Gallatin County and the Negro woman named Silvey, George,
a "Negro Man” about twenty-one years of age, for a considera-
tion of "five hundred dollars, lawful money of the United .
States,” bound himself to serve David J. Black for the term of
sixty years.

The next entry points to a method approximating out- -
right slave trade in the Illinois Territory, since the consent of:
the servant is not indicated as having been secured. In this case.: is
Louis LaChapelle of Randolph County had Isaac, a Negro man!
about twenty-three years of age, bound to him for a period of I.
forty years for an indicated consideration of $500. 4 This 1
indenture was acknowledged before William Greenup, county
clerk of Randolph County, Illinois, on February 3, 1815. La! 1
Chapelle then made a notation on the indenture as follows-]
" — for value receive [sic] I asign [sic'] over all my write! 1
[sic'] to the within indenter [sic] unto Thomas Ferguson and
hath this day delivered the above indentere [sic] servant as
the above indenters [sic] calls for as witness my hand and seal
this 7th day of June 1815. L. LaChapelle.”

Another record indicates the outright purchase of a slave
by Thomas Ferguson, a citizen of Pope County. This slave.!
Toney, had been purchased by Richard Thomas Porter, ofi
Edgecomb County, North Carolina, for "200 pounds currency
of North Carolina.” Porter was "to have and hold forever. 7
Then, on April 26, 1809, the following transaction was re-
corded: "For value received, I, Richard Thomas Porter — dc
assign over all my write [sic] — to Thomas Ferguson.”5 Porter
also "will warrant and defend title.” This transaction evidently
took place in Pope County, since it was acknowledged before
Joshua Scott, who was serving as county clerk.

3 Pope Co. Deed Record A, 7.

JOHN W. ALLEN

417

David Black then appears with a "slave” named George,
whom he had purchased of Thomas Dunkerson, of Christian
County, Kentucky, on November 19, 1810, for $400. This slave
was sold to Thomas Ferguson on April 2, 181 1.6 In the next
recorded transaction, Wiley Davis of Eddyville, Kentucky, as-
signed his interest in Letty, a slave about twenty years old, and
son about one year and ten months old, to Ferguson.7 In the
following entry Ferguson bound a Negro man named An-
thony for thirty years in return for a "a certain lot numbered
163 in Sarahville, now Golconda.”8 Anthony was to have im-
mediate possession and "enjoy the rents and profits” during
his term of servitude. The value of the lot must have been
negligible, since lots 16 1 and 168, fully as well located, sold
within a year from the time of Anthony’s indenture for $3.00
each. On July 7, 1816, Jeffery, mentioned in the second entry
on the county records, and previously referred to in this dis-
cussion as having been "bought” from Jessie Jones by Thomas
Ferguson, voluntarily bound himself to Ferguson for a period
iof thirty years for lot numbered 167.9 This lot was not trans-
ferred to Jeffery until December 1, 1821, more than five years
after he had signed the indenture. On July 27, 1816, Lettie, or
Lettice, a Negro woman about twenty-eight years old, was
bound to Thomas Ferguson for a period of thirty years for a
lot numbered 166 in Sarahville.10 The lot mentioned was not
transferred to Lettie until December 1, 1821. We next find a
bill of sale whereby John Ditterline on December 18, 18 16,
transferred his rights to Mary, "a slave for life,” to Ferguson
for a consideration of $500. 11 This transaction took place in
Pope County as evidenced by its acknowledgment before
Joshua Scott, county clerk.

6 Pope Co. Deed Record A, 10.

7 1 bid., 13.

'Ibid., 15.

'■'Ibid., 16.

10 Ibid., 18.

11 Ibid., 20.

418

SLAVERY IN POPE COUNTY

In April, 1817, Anthony, Lettie, Jeffery, and George
agreed to go to Missouri Territory with Ferguson.12 If this trip
was made as indicated, it would appear that Lettie and Jeffery
were later safely returned to Illinois since lots numbered 166
and 167 were transferred to them on December 1, 1821, but
no later mention of either Anthony or George was found on
the records.

Other indentures followed. Betty, a Negro woman about
twenty- two years of age, bound herself to Samuel Langdon for
a period of sixty years for a consideration of $400. 13 This in-
denture was acknowledged before Robert Lacey, judge of the
county court, on February 8, 1817. Nancy Williams, a Negro
woman from Missouri Territory, bound herself to Jacob Rob-
inson for a term of twenty years for a consideration of $500.14
This indenture was executed before Joshua Scott, county clerk;
of Pope County. In April, 1817, Daniel and Vina bound them-
selves to Joshua Scott, county recorder, for forty years. The
consideration named in each case was $400. 15 These inden-
tures for Daniel and Vina were acknowledged before Joshua
Scott, and both indentures were witnessed by Prudence M.
Rose and Polly Pankey.

On August 20, 1817, Anny bound herself to Isom Clay! I
for sixteen years for a consideration of $400. 16 One week later
David Turner and Millie, "late out of Jefferson County, Vir-
ginia,” bound themselves to David Cowan for fifty years. A;
consideration of $400 is named in each case. On January 6,
1818, Judith, about seventeen years old, "last [sic'] of the Ter-j
ritory of Missouri,” bound herself to William Wilson, of
Pope County, for a period of ninety-nine years.17 For this term;
of service she is supposed to have received $400. On February
13, 1818, Linda, a Negro woman about nineteen years old,

12 Pope Co. Deed Record A, 21.

JOHN W. ALLEN

419

"last f sic'] out of Missouri Territory” likewise bound herself
to William Wilson for a period of ninety-nine years for a
named consideration of $400.18 This indenture would have ex-
pired on February 13, 1917.

A Negro boy named Anthony, about eighteen years old,
was sold on December 14, 1820, by John Henry, of Pope
County, to Elizabeth Henry, of Logan County, Kentucky, for
the sum of $6 12. 19 This bill of sale was certified by Craven P.
Hester, a justice of the peace for Pope County. This would
■ definitely indicate the sale as taking place in Illinois. Anthony
: had not previously appeared in the records of the county as a
slave.

According to tradition, and occasionally by implication,
other outright sales of slaves occurred in Pope County after
the admission of Illinois to statehood. An outright sale was
made in the settlement of the estate of Larkin Kesterson, who
j died on May 25, 1829. 20 In his will, Kesterson provided "that
his said executor shall sell his two Negro men, Macklin and
Frank, together.” This provision of the will was carried out
; by Robert Kesterson, father of the deceased and executor of
his estate, when the Negroes were sold in November, 1829, for
i $325. Neither Macklin nor Frank was previously recorded in
i the circuit clerk’s records of slaves.

These instances of unrecorded slaves held by Kesterson,
] as well as the case of Anthony cited in the previous paragraph,

| coupled with unverified traditions, would seem to indicate
lj that there were numerous other slaves owned in Pope County.

I Negro indentures were not found on the deed records in the
[circuit clerk’s office after this date, though they are referred
to in other county records.

A new turn of affairs is indicated in the next group of

[{entries dated August 19, 1823.21 At that time William Beams

I—

18 Pope Co. Deed Record A, 34.

19 Ibid., 75.

20 Pope County Probate Court Record (Golconda, 111.) A, 70, 126.

21 Pope Co. Deed Record A, 326-41.

420

SLAVERY IN POPE COUNTY

emancipated and issued certificates of freedom to twelve slaves
as listed below:

Abraham about sixteen years old

Martin . nine years old

Gilbert about twenty-one years old

Cunningham about eight years old

Sam about twelve years old

Thomas nine years old

Hetty six weeks old

Lotty about seventeen years old

Nelly about forty-five years old

Rody about thirteen years old

Luckey about twenty-two years old

Nancy about sixteen years old

These are the first emancipations found recorded in Pope
County. The certificates are signed by Beams, with his mark, hi
and are witnessed by Edmund Richmond.

The next recorded emancipations were made on Febru-
ary 13, 1830, when Wiley Jones granted freedom to "Chaney > I
a woman of color twenty-six years old of low stature” and to: j
her children, Anne, Judah, James, and Alfred.22 All this was! I
"for and in consideration of faithful service.” The emancipa- ji
tions made by Beams and Jones were evidently of slaves or i
servants held in Pope County.

The record of Fannie Mac, "a woman of color,” is some-
what singular.23 Fannie Mac purchased her son, Caesar, a slave,;
from Stephen Smelser, of Calway County, Kentucky, on Sep-
tember 14, 1835> for the sum of $550. One hundred and fifty
dollars was paid in cash and the balance by a note with security, j
On January 29, 1836, she, "for love and affection,” emanci-
pated Caesar. Fannie Mac thus held, for a short time, her own!
son as a slave.

A slightly different case was that of a slave named Lewis,
brought from Arkansas to Pope County for the express purpose j
of emancipation on March 15, 1838. 24 The next year a some-

22 Pope Co. Deed Record A, 315.

™ Ibid., 620.

24 Pope Co. Deed Record B, 178.

JOHN W. ALLEN

421

what similar case is found when Eli Roden, of Pope County,
formerly of Arkansas, emancipated "Mary Ann, a woman of
color, a slave," and her children, Melvina about four years
old, Margaretta about three years old, and Henrietta about
one year old.25

David A. Smith, on March 22, 1817, secured the approval
of an Alabama court and freed his slaves, William, William’s
wife, Isabel, and their six children. These certificates of free-
dom were filed for record in Pope County on November 22,
1838. 26

Other certificates of freedom for former slaves appear on
later Pope County records. Thus, on May 10, 1845, "Moses,
a man of color," after extended and complicated legal proced-
ures, establishes the fact that he had purchased his freedom,
along with that of his wife and son, from their Tennessee
owner for $1,450. In these proceedings Moses was represented
by "next friend" John Stephenson.27 These certificates were
filed in Pope County and indicate that these Negroes became
' residents there.

On the same date, May 10, 1845, "Jerry, a colored man,"
filed his certificate of freedom in Pope County after he had
failed to secure passage to Liberia from Hardeman County,
Tennessee.28 On May 27, of the same year, Winnie, who, after
involved court procedures in Missouri and in Kentucky, won
her freedom, filed the certificate in the office of the recorder
in Pope County. The records in this case cover about ten pages
.and indicate that Winnie had been illegally in slavery for some
jyears.29

Slaves were evidently held until a comparatively late date
in Pope County. This is indicated by the fact that Lucinda, and
I her eight children, named as slaves, were freed by the will of

25 Pope Co. Deed Record B, 224.

26 Ibid., 371.

27 Pope Co. Deed Record C, 355.

28 Ibid., 403.

29 Ibid., 339.

422 SLAVERY IN POPE COUNTY

William R. Adams, which was dated December 28, 1846.30 j]

One of the most interesting certificates during this period
is that filed for Matthew Scott on September 22, 1846. In this*,
certificate, the freedom of Scott and his family, consisting of a
wife and nine children, is established along with the fact that:
Scott had received a military discharge from the "company of
Captain William McCalley in the General Jackson War."31

On July 31, 1850, Patsey, who had been born free in Vir-
ginia, established the fact in this county by registering her J
certificate in the recorder’s office. On the same day, Theodore
Mundle, through an affadavit filed by Robert T. Leeper, estab-
lished the fact that he was a free Negro and had lived with: ’j
his mother in the county for the past five years.32

In the inspection made, no later records of certificates of <
freedom were found on the records for Pope County.

In all cases concerning the freeing of slaves, a somewhat
detailed description is given. This procedure was used so that
the one emancipated could be readily identified. In the caseN
of slaves or servants brought into the state and indentured, it
was required that bonds be furnished in order to guarantee!
that such Negroes would not become public charges of the|
county. Laws of the period also required that similar bonds be!
filed for Negroes being emancipated. In some instances this
requirement was fulfilled. In other instances no record of as
bond occurs; it was in compliance with this demand that
William Beams, on August 19, 1823, filed bond for $13,000
with the county court.

The foregoing instances are cited as being indicative of;
the course of slavery and Negro servitude in a typical southern!
Illinois county. Other uncited records of slaves and indentured j
servants are to be found in various Pope County records. A
careful search fails to reveal the later disposition of those j

30 Pope Co. Deed Record D, 57.
31 Ibid 32.

32 Ibid 497.

JOHN W. ALLEN

423

bound to a term of service. The records do not show that these
servants and slaves were freed when the periods for which they
were bound expired. Tradition likewise fails to provide an
answer.

—

THE WINTER OF ’49 AND ’50— ONE HUNDRED YEARS AGO

Daniel S. Curtiss traveled extensively in Illinois, Wisconsin, and Iowa
in the latter 1840’s. His observations and researches led him to write Western
Portraiture, and Emigrant’s Guide (1852), which was an up-to-the-minute
picture of a rapidly developing country and from which the following
excerpt (pp. 240-41) is taken:

The climate of Illinois is such as
[would be naturally expected from the
[latitude in which it lies. The ther-
jmometer does not range more widely
(here than in similar parallels east of
[the Alleghany [sic] mountains; nor
•perhaps as much so as in those dis-
tricts beyond the influence of the
jf sea-breeze. . . .

The -winter commences in Decem-
I’ber, and ends in February. Its dura-
tion and temperature are variable.
'The winters generally exhibit a tem-
Iperature of climate somewhat milder
[than those of the Atlantic states in
kthe same latitude. Snow rarely falls
| to the depth of six inches, and as
| rarely remains more than ten to
| twelve days. There are, however, oc-
ijcasional short periods of very cold
| weather; but they seldom continue
[longer than three of four days at a
Jtime. The Mississippi is sometimes
I frozen over and passed on the ice at
St. Louis, and occasionally for several

weeks together. The year 1811 was
remarkable for the river closing over
twice — a circumstance which had
not occurred before within the mem-
ory of the oldest inhabitant.

During the winter of ’49-50, there
was nearly three months continuous
sleighing in Illinois, Wisconsin, and
Iowa; a circumstance which had not
occurred before for many years. The
writer of this, during that winter,
crossed the Mississippi in a sleigh
on the ice, at Rock Island, in the
first week of January; and he crossed
it as far down as Keokuk, on the ice,
as late as the first week in March, of
the same winter. At Chicago, and
along the Canal, the holidays were
made the more merry by fine sleigh-
riding, which is very unusual in that
region. Still, the winters in these
States are on the average much
milder and more favorable to stock
than in similar latitudes at the
East.

KEEN & COOKE: PRAIRIE PUBLISHERS

BY MADELEINE B. STERN

IN the summer of 1852, a young bookseller, touring the
Great Lakes with a friend, paid his first visit to Chicago. ,
Though the streets of the city were filled with mud and dotted
with unsightly rows of wooden shanties, the accounts of its
sudden and marvelous growth were fabulous enough to com-
pel his deepest interest. Chicago, it appeared, was fast becom- <
ing one of the largest book markets in the country. The center i
of the bookselling business in the Midwest seemed to be shift- >
ing from Cincinnati, where the young man had been appren-
ticed, to the city on the shores of Lake Michigan. Observing
the ample stocks of the booksellers already established there, [
and the "Prairie Schooners” that carried their wares to the out-
lying country, he determined to join the westward march and
set up a book business in Chicago.1

His decision was based not only upon observation, but

1 For the Chicago background of this period in general, and the book trade in
particular, see "The Book Trade in Chicago,” American Publishers’ Circular and Liter- fj
ary Gazette, Vol. II, no. 39 (Sept. 27, 1856), 588, and D. B. Cooke, "My Memories (
of the Book Trade,” Publishers’ Weekly, Vol. IX, no. 12 (Mar. 18, 1876), 378-79.

Madeleine B. Stem wrote the present article as one of a series
which she expects to gather together into a book on nineteenth-
century American publishers and booksellers. Miss Stern is asso-
ciated with a rare book firm in Neiv York and has written numerous
articles for periodicals and several books about American women.
Her Life of Louisa May Alcott will be brought out in April by
the University of Oklahoma Press. The Life of Margaret Fuller
was published in 1942 by E. P. Dutton & Co. She has begun work
on a third volume in this group — the life of Mrs. Prank Leslie.

424

MADELEINE B. STERN

425

upon experience, for David Brainerd Cooke had followed the
book trade since he was fifteen.2 Born in Northampton, Massa-
chusetts, in 1826, the son of Daniel and Melissa Cooke, he had,
at the time of his father’s death in 1836, migrated by canal to
the small village of Columbus, Ohio. After the usual routine
of his school duties he had, in 1841, entered the bookstore of
H. W. Derby, where schoolbooks, Bibles, and a full line of
publications from the East vied with stationery and sheet-
| music, flutes and fiddles, penknives and wallpaper, Currier
prints and Macassar hair oil to cater to the wants of midwest-
; ern patrons. Columbus in those days was the center of the
trade, supplying Cincinnati and the entire state with books and
stationery, and D. B. Cooke was in his element. Rising at five,
he worked until ten at night and sometimes until midnight,
spending a portion of each evening cutting out with knife and
tin pattern all the envelopes that would be needed for the fol-
lowing day’s sales. As he worked, he observed and learned,
watching the wagons from neighboring mills pick up paper
rags and leave writing and wrapping paper in payment. When
trade became dull at home, he and his employer took a load
[ of surplus stock and traveled into the country to sell books at
(auction from the tail of a wagon. Even in the early 1840’s,
‘however, the winds of fortune were shifting westward, and
•when H. W. Derby noticed that the greater portion of his busi-
mess came from Cincinnati, he left Columbus for that city,
accompanied, in the stage over the national turnpike, by his
I young and eager assistant, D. B. Cooke. There, in 1844, the
j apprentice continued his work, along with his observations, in

- For D. B. Cooke’s early life and apprenticeship with H. W. Derby, see A. T.
I Andreas, History of Chicago (Chicago, 1885), 11:486; Cooke, Publishers’ Weekly,
Vol. IX, no. 11, (Mar. 11. 1876), 320-22, Vol. IX, no. 12, pp. 378-79; Harriec R.
W. Cooke, The Cookes of Rhode Island. Mounted Clippings from the Newport
| Mercury (Newport, 1901-1902), 168; obituaries of D. B. Cooke in New York Times,
Oct. 23, 1884, and Publishers’ Weekly, Vol. XXVI, no. 17 (Oct. 25, 1884), 588.
[ For obituaries of Cooke in the Chicago Herald, Chicago Times , Chicago Tribune, and
I Daily Inter Ocean (all of Oct. 23, 1884), the writer is indebted to Gladys Stack,
reference librarian of the Chicago Historical Society. The writer also wishes to thank
Walter Sutton, Syracuse University, for his help.

426 KEEN & COOKE: PRAIRIE PUBLISHERS

the well-appointed establishment of Derby, Bradley & Com-
pany, where an elegant assortment of choice books spread the
knowledge of arts and sciences through the Midwest. D. B.
Cooke stayed on with the firm when it became H. W. Derby > :
& Company, and John C. Barnes and Fletcher Harper, Jr., :
joined its staff, learning the secrets of the school- and law- i
book and stationery departments, learning always the needs
and desires of the midwestern patrons whom he served.

Most important of all, he learned from his apprenticeship ; r
with Derby to follow the western shift in the trade, and, bear- : J
ing letters from Judge James Hall, the Hon. Bellamy Storer, • n
and others, he started in 1852 for Chicago. A run over the strap ; .
rails of the Little Miami and the Mad River and Lake Erie ; i
roads via Sandusky, and thence by lake steamer, brought him, [ :
after a journey of several days, to his new home.3 At 135 Lake : i
Street he established his store,4 one of several literary emporia i
of the prairies.

Among his colleagues on Chicago’s Booksellers’ Row j
were Joseph Keen, Jr., & Brother. The "Brother” in this firm
was destined to link his career one day with that of D. B.
Cooke. Like Cooke, William Brantley Keen,5 the son of Joseph j
and Sarah Keen, had been born in 1826, in the East, in Phila- {
delphia, and by 1850 had ventured to Chicago, joining his
brother’s firm. Unlike Cooke, he did not found a new firm, but
simply carried on one that already had an interesting history
in midwestern bookselling annals. As early as 1844, Brauti-
gam & Keen, wholesale and retail booksellers and stationers,

3 Cooke described his journey to Chicago in Publishers’ Weekly, Mar. 18,
1876, p. 379.

4 Udall & Hopkins’ Chicago City Directory, for 1852 & ’53 (Chicago, 1852).
For Directory information used in this article, the writer is indebted to Dr. Clarence
S. Brigham, American Antiquarian Society; Roger B. Francis, New York Public
Library; Herbert H. Hewitt, Chicago Public Library; J. Monaghan, Illinois State j
Historical Library; Paul North Rice, New York Public Library; Winifred Ver Nooy, |
University of Chicago; and Oscar Wegelin, New York Historical Society.

5 For the early life of William B. Keen, see Gregory B. Keen, The Descendants
of Joran Kyn of Neiv Sweden (Philadelphia, 1913), 116; 'William B. Keen,”
Chicago Times-Herald, Jan. 1, 1897; "Obituary Notes,” Publishers’ Weekly, Vol. LI,
no. 3 (Jan. 16, 1897), 57.

MADELEINE B. STERN

427

of 14 6 Lake Street, had issued a Catalogue of School , Classical,
Theological, Law, Medical, And Miscellaneous Books.6 They
had sold, "on the most accommodating terms,” an assortment
of spellers, readers, arithmetics, grammars, geographies, and
histories, for the need for school texts was paramount as edu-
cation followed in the wake of new settlements. Lawbooks,
too, had been needed for men setting up new businesses, mak-
ing new contracts, joining new partnerships, and the firm of
Brautigam & Keen supplied to its patrons a variety of works
on conveyancing, nisi prius, partnership, executors, and even
the rights of married women. The attention of professional
gentlemen, teachers, school inspectors, country merchants,
library committees, parents, and, indeed, of all who were
engaged in building up a new section of the country, was
called to the "valuable books in all the departments of litera-
:ure” which Brautigam & Keen provided, from the publica-
:ions of Eastern firms to albums and blankbooks, maps, and
:ravelers’ guides. This desire to satisfy the demands of a mid-
(vestern community continued to dominate the firm when it
became known as Joseph Keen, Jr., & Brother, and as D. B.
Cooke was learning the literary requirements of his new cus-
omers, William B. Keen, who would one day be associated
fvith him, was enjoying a similar education.

It was an exciting time for a bookseller to pursue his
rade in Chicago. S. C. Griggs & Company, A. H. & C. Burley,
ind W. W. Danenhower were all plying their flourishing busi-
nesses, until one journalist could declare that "the intellectual
(progress of our people fully equals the advancement of the
West in material wealth and political power.”7 Since Chicago

6 Catalogue of School, Classical, Theological, Law, Medical, and Miscellaneous
>ooks, for sale by Brautigam & Keen (Chicago, 1844), copy in Chicago Historical
ociety. Brautigam & Keen came to Chicago from Philadelphia "and opened a book-
rore at No. 146 Lake street in 1842." See "Chicago’s Book Trade,” Chicago Times, June
4, 1884, Supplement.

7 American Publishers’ Circular and Literary Gazette, Sept. 27, 1856, p. 588.
or further details of background, see "Book Business in the Northwest,” American
iterary Gazette and Publishers’ Circular, Vol. V, no. 4 (June 15, 1865), 72; His-
irical Records Survey, Check List of Chicago Ante-Fire Imprints, 1851-71 ( American

428

KEEN & COOKE! PRAIRIE PUBLISHERS

had first been settled, its population had nearly doubled ever;
four years, and by 1852, when Cooke and Keen had both se
up in business there, the city had entered upon one of its mos
active and important periods. Already it seemed destined t< :
become the railroad center of the country; soon its "elegan
business blocks and residences/’ its "noble marble and iroi
fronts” would bear witness to its speedy climb to the positioi
of the second city of the continent. The day was not far ofj |
when the young city would become the chief commercial erri ij
porium of the Northwest. Amid the bustle and stir of its ne^v
and expanding developments, the booksellers found thei
place. Both Keen and Cooke, along their separate ways, hac
timed their enterprises propitiously.

Under the firm name of D. B. Cooke & Company, thi
proprietor offered, in his Lake Street store in High and Magie’
Building, a "complete stock of school, miscellaneous, law, am
medical books and stationery.”* * * 8 As constantly multiplying rail
roads rapidly opened up the surrounding country, he fount :
an eager market for his stock in the outlying districts of Chill
cago. Strangers visiting the city were invited to call at the "ele
gant Book Establishment of D. B. Cooke & Company,” when
they might find "constantly on hand the largest stock of Book: j
and Stationery in the Western Country,” offered "at Easten I
prices.” Country merchants and booksellers were assured thaj I
they would find it to their interest to lay in their supplies a! I
D. B. Cooke’s "Great Western Book Concern.” Country librar[|
ies would be furnished at Eastern rates, and country dealers 1
druggists, and booksellers were urged to examine the shelvej I
of 135 Lake Street before purchasing elsewhere.

Yet, even at this early period in the life of D. B. Cooke <5j 1

Imprints Inventory No. 4, Chicago, 1938), iii; Fifth Annual Revieiv of the Com

merce, Manufactures, and the Public and Private improvements of Chicago (Chicagc

1857), 16.

8 Cooke, Publishers’ Weekly, Mar. 18, 1876, p. 379. For the early booksellin,
activities of D. B. Cooke & Company, see also "Chicago’s Book Trade,” Publisher .
Weekly , Vol. XXVI, no. 1 (July 5, 1884), 12, and D. B. Cooke & Company’s Net
Law Book List (Chicago, n.d.), copy in Chicago Historical Society.

MADELEINE B. STERN

429

Company, the bookseller’s interest centered not only upon
serving the Midwest as a wholesale dealer, but upon establish-
ing a reputation as a lawbook specialist. One of the firm’s
earliest extant catalogues, an undated sixteen-page brochure
issued from 135 Lake Street, is entitled D. B. Cooke & Com-
pany s New Law Book List. It calls the attention of the profes-
sion to a stock "as large and various as that of any dealers in
the United States,” and suggests that members of the bar write
or make personal application at 135 Lake Street instead of pur-
chasing from traveling dealers or the agents of Eastern houses.
Orders for lawbooks would be promptly filled; new books and
state reports were regularly received and supplied; and at the
cost of one cent an ounce the volumes would be sent by mail.
The list itself substantiates Cooke’s assertions. At prices rang-
ing from $1.00 to $130, every variety of book appealing to the
midwestern legal profession was offered, from Curtis’ Ameri-
can Conveyancer to Addison on Contracts. Books on equity or
tide waters, criminal law and state reports, sheriffs and rail-
way cases, the law of divorce and partnership, fixtures and
patents were available at 135 Lake Street, for, as the Midwest
expanded, the need for legalizing claims and partnerships
'expanded with it.

D. B. Cooke had so astutely judged the needs of his
patrons that by 1856 his quarters proved too limited for his
Ibusiness, and he moved to the "elegant store” erected by
Edward and Walter Wright at 112 Lake Street. The removal
[(was of such interest that the Chicago correspondent of the
| New York Evening Lost devoted considerable space to it in
in article which was entitled "Growth of Chicago — The Book
Trade”:

Among the improvements here going on you will regard none with
I nore interest and pleasure than the multiplying and enlarging of the book-
i stores. The old ones grow straight; they are eked out with additions; they
become taller, broader and more beautiful, until now Chicago is to have as
I'plendid and capacious bookstores as are to be found in the new world.

430

KEEN & COOKE: PRAIRIE PUBLISHERS

Chief among those now building is that for which A. [sic} B. Cooke & Com]
pany are to become the occupants.9

With no little optimism, Cooke had leased the white, cut,
marble building for a period of ten years at $8,000 a year. Yet
his ambitions seemed justified. In the short time in which he
had been in business in Chicago he had finally attained sales
amounting to nearly $200,000 in one year. His lawbook sales
reached between $40,000 and $50,000 a year, and the horizon :<
of his trade comprehended Iowa, Wisconsin, Minnesota;
Indiana, Kansas, and Michigan, as well as Illinois.

In the making of Chicago’s books, as well as in selling
them, D. B. Cooke was to play an important role. Between!
1855 and 1861 his imprint appeared upon a variety of works <;
that would appeal either to the legal profession or those more i
generally interested in the westward expansion of the country j l
Besides selling "the largest stock of law books in the western 1
country," Cooke advertised himself as "publisher of all the
local books needed by the Western Lawyer."10 It is, for the :
most part, therefore, those books that catered to the demands! 1
of the profession in the Midwest that bore the imprint of D. B.
Cooke & Company. The Charter and Ordinances of the City I
of Chicago appeared under his aegis, with the proud note that! I
"the correctness and beauty of its typography, neatness and! I
style of its binding, are evidence that Chicago is not surpassed

9 New York Evening Post, Sept. 27, 1856. The article was reprinted in "Literary
Intelligence,” American Publishers’ Circular and Literary Gazette, Vol. II, no. 4C
(Oct. 4, 1856), 603. D. B. Cooke’s "New Marble Building” and his stock are described
in an advertisement on the second page of the cover of the Fifth Annual Revieiv of the
Commerce of Chicago. For his bookselling activities there, see also D. B. Cooke 6
Company’s Catalogue of Books for Public, Private and School Libraries (Chicago
n.d.). At this time, in 1856, Cooke bought the stock of A. H. Burley & Company.
See Chicago Times, June 14, 1884, Supplement.

10 Advertisement of D. B. Cooke & Company’s publications in American Pub-
lishers’ Circular and Literary Gazette, Vol. VI, no. 12 (Mar. 24, I860), 149. Foi
Cooke’s various publications, see, besides the works themselves, his advertisements on
a bill of Aug. 24, I860, on the front fly leaf of D. B. Cooke & Co.’s Chicago City
Directory, for 1860-61 (Chicago, I860); the announcements of his publications in
American Publishers’ Circular and Literary Gazette Vol. IV, no. 9 (Feb. 27, 1858).
99, Vol. IV, no. 40 (Oct. 2, 1858), 475, and Vol. V, no. 10 (Mar. 5, 1859), HO.
See also Check List of Chicago Ante-Fire Imprints; file of Chicago imprints in New
York Public Library; O. Roorbach, Addenda to the Bibliotheca Americana, 1853-1858
(New York, 1939).

MADELEINE B. STERN

431

by the older cities in the elaboration of these noble arts.”11
When the Supreme Court ruled that abstracts of state cases
were to be "printed in a neat and workmanlike manner, with
small pica type, and leaded lines,”12 the publishing of the
Illinois Reports was assigned to D. B. Cooke & Company. And
the state legislature purchased $15,000 worth of the firm’s
Statutes of Illinois at one session.

One of Cooke’s lawbooks was of particular interest in the
growth of the Midwest. Barry’s Theory and Practice of the
International Trade of the United States devoted a chapter to
'The North-West, and Its Outlets to the Ocean,” and con-
tained the following expression of regionalism in its preface:

It is high time that American capitalists on the seaboard, . . . were in-
:ormed of the outs and ins of Western trade, and in an especial manner
orought into more immediate sympathy with Illinois. Here, ... is to be
,ound the greatest accumulation of human food, raised with the least expendi-
■ure of capital and labor, and yet that accumulation finds its way to shipping
ports, in a manner calculated to keep production down to the lowest point. . . .
What has built up New York and every other great commercial centre, but
jlirect communication with other countries? and what but that can develop
ully the productive forces of the West? We want the cottons of Manchester,
he stuffs of Bradford, and the silks of Lyons and Spitalfields, put down where
he wheat and corn are grown. . . . The West and Chicago are ripe and able
f or European enterprise.13

Chicago was ripe, also, for midwestern Americana, and
p. B. Cooke was ready to publish such works. His imprint ap-
peared on A Handbook to the Gold Fields of Nebraska and

1 Kansas; on Bonney’s Banditti of the Prairies, "an authentic
larrative of thrilling adventures in the early settlement of the
vestern country”; on Mrs. Kinzie’s Wau-Bun, the rrEarly Day ”
n the Northwest, the author of which naively gave evidence in
ier preface to the increasing interest in the country’s past:

11 George W. and John A. Thompson, The Charter and Ordinances of the City
f Chicago (Chicago, 1856), vi.

12 E. Peck, Reports of Cases Determined in the Supreme Court of the State of
'linois (Chicago, 1856), XVI: xii.

13 P. Barry, The Theory and Practice of the International Trade of the U nited
tates (Chicago, 1858), 7-8.

432 KEEN & COOKE: PRAIRIE PUBLISHERS

It never entered the anticipations of the most sanguine that the march*
of improvement and prosperity would, in less than a quarter of a centuryjii
have so obliterated the traces of "the first beginning,” that a vast and intelli-;
gent multitude would be crying out for information in regard to the early!
settlement of this portion of our country.14

Cooke was ready to publish works that would give thisll
information, as well as books by leading Chicago writers, such
as Benjamin F. Taylor’s January and June . He was prepared *
to issue not only those works that uncovered the past, but those! I
that would themselves make history, lending his imprint to a i
Life of Stephen A. Douglas by a Member of the Western Barm
and to Burnham’s Martyr-Crisis. In addition, he published!
works of a more practical nature, railway maps indispensable
to tourists, shippers, and railway companies: the Great West-m
ern Railway Guide , a Railway Map of the Great W est, a Mini \ I
ature Map of the Western States. Annually, between 1858 and jj
I860, his imprint appeared upon the Chicago City Directory M
the publisher’s announcement of which is a remarkable indexi I
to the rapid growth of sectionalism in the Midwest: "It will «
be noticed that this is a home enterprise. No advertisements of; £
Eastern houses have been solicited, believing this city able tel
support her own Institutions.”1*

Upon the cover of Cooke’s first issue of that Directory inn
1858 appears an advertisement that tells the story of the vicis- ■
situdes of his firm. A phoenix rising from the ashes is flanked]
by two printed sections: DESTROYED BY FIRE OCTOBER
19, 1857; RE-OPENED IN PORTLAND BLOCK, JANU
ARY, 185 8. 16 In the Lake Street fire of 1857, when water was
scarce and the flames raged long and fiercely, some half a
million dollars’ worth of Chicago property was lost, and
though he had prospered from the start of his career, D. B
Cooke sustained a staggering blow. In spite of the fact that he

14 Mrs. John H. Kinzie, Wau-Bun, the Early Day” in the Northwest (Chicago
1857), vi.

15 D. B. Cooke & Company’s Directory of Chicago for . . , 1858 (Chicago, 1858)
iii.

Directory of Chicago for 1858.

MADELEINE B. STERN

433

was insured "in responsible offices” for $75,000, he was burned
out and nearly beggared. The fire of 1857 was a prelude to
another, greater fire that would affect him later in his history,
and that was a prelude to the panic that would engulf so many
Chicago firms. Though he moved, first to the Portland Block
and then to 111, and 115 Lake Street, continuing the sale and
publication of books for the Midwest, by 1863, when doubt-
less the Civil War had increased his difficulties, he was forced,
albeit temporarily, to abandon his establishment, having
sold out to his former associate, E. B. Myers.17 H. W. Derby,
his employer in Columbus and Cincinnati, had once served as
express agent in Ohio, and Cooke, having published a variety
of railway maps and guides, found himself naturally drawn to
the American Express Company, for which he acted as Chicago
agent and correspondent until 1864.18 At that time he resigned
’his position to join the staff of S. C. Griggs & Company, in
whose "palace of books” he served first as clerk and later as
^partner, giving to the organization "that practical energy . . .
and that popularity which has always attended his business
intercourse with the public.” In 1868, however, that firm’s
magnificent stock was also destroyed by fire, and Cooke with-
drew, ready at long last to restore his own name to the shingles
of Booksellers’ Row.19

Meantime, during the years between 1852 and 1868, the
.man who was to be Cooke’s partner had also played his role in

17 For the fire of 1857, and Cooke’s selling out, see Publishers’ Weekly, July 5,
11884, p. 12; Joseph Kirkland, The Story of Chicago (Chicago, 1892), 236; "Literary
^Intelligence,” American Publishers’ Circular and Literary Gazette, Vol. Ill, no. 43
■ (Oct. 24, 1857), 670. E. B. Myers is listed as "successor to D. B. Cooke & Company”
[in the Chicago directory of 1862-63.

18 For Cooke’s service with the American Express Company, see Andreas, History
of Chicago, II: 126; A. L. Stimson, History of the Express Business (New York, 1881),
198 — courtesy N. F. Page, American Express Company.

10 For Cooke’s association with Griggs, see advertisement of S. C. Griggs in
Chicago Evening Journal, Nov. 3, 1866; "Book Business in the Northwest,” American
Literary Gazette and Publishers’ Circular, June 15, 1865, p. 72; Cooke, Publishers’
Weekly, Mar. 18, 1876, p. 379- Jack C. Morris, "The Publishing Activities of S. C.
Griggs and Company . . .” (M.S. thesis, University of Illinois, 1941), 35, 37, 38;

Notes on Books and Booksellers,” American Literary Gazette and Publishers’ Circular,
Vol. VII, no. 1 (May 1, 1866), 4.

434

KEEN & COOKE: PRAIRIE PUBLISHERS

midwestern publishing history. The firm with which he had
been associated, Joseph Keen, Jr., & Brother, had become
Keen & Lee in 1855. At their four-story "Mammoth Book
Store” on Lake Street, William B. Keen and Franklin Lee of-
fered a stock "unrivaled in quantity and variety.”20 As whole-
sale booksellers they provided, like their colleague, D. B.
Cooke, a large assortment of school, medical, theological, mis-
cellaneous, and lawbooks, together with a stock of fine Eng-
lish stationery, Congress papers, and record books. Town and
country libraries were supplied at liberal discounts; country
merchants were offered generous terms; and all the books
recommended by the State Superintendent of Public Instruc-
tion were constantly on hand. Through their connections with
large importing and manufacturing establishments both in
Europe and the eastern United States, Keen & Lee were en-
abled to augment their stock for their patrons in the North-
west. In addition, the firm published works similar to those
that bore the imprint of D. B. Cooke, sponsoring such legal
publications as Haines’s Probate Manual and such items of
midwestern Americana as The Western Farmer’s . . . Hand-
book, Parker’s Iowa as It Is, Gerhard’s Illinois as It Is, and Fra-
zier’s Minnesota as It Is. What is more, some of the identical
works published by D. B. Cooke, such as the Illinois Statutes
and Haines’s Treatise on Illinois Justices of the Peace, had
previously borne the Keen & Lee imprint. From the start, there-
fore, the two firms evinced similar interests and catered to simi-
lar tastes.

By 1859, after D. B. Cooke had sustained his loss by fire
and had moved to 111 Lake Street, Franklin Lee had died and
William B. Keen had established his own business at 148 Lake
Street. There he remained until 1868, continuing the policy

20 Advertisement of Keen & Lee’s Mammoth Book Store in N. Howe Parker,
Iowa as It Is (Chicago, 1855). For the bookselling and publishing activities of this
firm, see also their announcements in American Publishers’ Circular and Literary
Gazette, Vol. II, no. 6 (Feb. 9, 1856), 78; their "Catalogue of Goods” in Fred Ger-
hard, Illinois as It Is (Chicago, 1857); Check List of Chicago Ante-Pire Imprints; file
of Chicago imprints in New York Public Library.

MADELEINE B. STERN

435

that had long ago been inaugurated by Brautigam & Keen,
selling at wholesale and at retail the lawbooks and school
texts in which the Midwest evinced so deep an interest, and
publishing under his own imprint such legal tomes as The
Revised Statutes of Wisconsin and Haines’s Laws of Wiscon-
sin concerning the Organization ... of Towns. His success
was such that in 1867 his sales were said to have been

f$6l4,835.21

Through the years both Keen and Cooke had played their
parts in a history in the making. Both were born in 1826 and
ihad themselves followed the westward trend, migrating to
Chicago at about the same time, and serving its developing
bastes and interests in the books they sold and published. What,
;:hen, seemed more appropriate than that when D. B. Cooke
|vvas ready to return to Booksellers’ Row he should enter into
oartnership with the neighbor and colleague whose career had
>o closely paralleled his own?

The names of W. B. Keen and D. B. Cooke were first
inked together in the Chicago directory of 1869, where they
ire listed at 113 and 115 State Street. A picture of this Book-
sellers’ Row of a later Chicago22 shows the establishment
fvhere, in a marble block shared by S. C. Griggs and the West-
ern News Company, the two industrious booksellers plied their
rade together. With "shelves and show-cases crowded, and
enormous stacks of books, . . . rising from every available
quare foot of the floor,”23 the firm did a business estimated at
>ver $500,000 in the general trade, schoolbooks, and fancy

21 For the activities of the William B. Keen firm, see his advertisement in Elijah
4. Haines, Laws of Wisconsin Concerning the Organization and Government of Toivns
Chicago, 1858); Check List of Chicago Ante-Lire Imprints; file of Chicago imprints
i New York Public Library. Morris, "The Publishing Activities of S. C. Griggs and
Company, ” 40.

22 In Paul Gilbert and Charles Lee Bryson, Chicago and Its Makers (Chicago,
929), 264.

23 A. D. R.fichardson], "Western Bibliography: The Book Trade of the North-
rest,” New York Tribune, Oct. 16, 1869. The premises of the Western News Com-
any, S. C. Griggs, and W. B. Keen & Cooke are described there as "the finest group
f book stores in the world,’’ renting from $16,000 to $20,000 apiece. See also J. B.
.unnion, "Our Aesthetical Development,” The Lakeside Monthly, Vol. VII, no. 37
Jan., 1872), 20.

436

KEEN & COOKE: PRAIRIE PUBLISHERS

Letterhead beneath which D.
B. Cooke wrote to Lee and Shepard,
June 21, 1870 (Courtesy Dr. Clar-
ence S. Brigham, American Anti-
quarian Society).

stationery. The three great Chicago firms were said to be "un-
surpassed, either in this country or . . . Europe” in the magni-i
tude and variety of their collections, which "embraced the
whole circuits of knowledge.” Their combined sales were
declared to reach $2,500,000 annually.

A letter now in the possession of the American Anti-
quarian Society24 depicts the
new device in which, beneath
a globe flanked by a bust of:
Minerva and a torch, and em-
bellished with scrolls and
books, the names of W.B. Keen;
and Cooke are united. That let-;
ter, incidentally, bears interest-
ing witness to the business tech-1
nique of the new firm. Ad-!
dressed to Lee and Shepard of Boston, it intercedes on be-
half of the physician, Dr. William Byford, whose medical
works had apparently not been enjoying as rapid a sale as his
publishers, Lee and Shepard, expected. Cooke, writing now
as a member of W. B. Keen & Cooke, suggested to the Boston
publishers: "Suppose you get up a slip circular and send out I
a supply with imprints. Send us a few hundred and we willl
put them in our correspondence. Your orders will increase.”! j
The suggestion was based upon experience, for the new firm I
was not unfamiliar with medical publications, having issued|i|
under their combined imprint a work on the Proving of Car- 1|1
bolic Acid by a member of the Hahnemann Medical College
in Chicago.25 On the whole, however, they seem to have spe-
cialized, during this early period of their union, in the book-
selling and stationery fields, and, combining experience in the|

trade with untiring industry, they succeeded so well that they

24 D. B. Cooke to Lee and Shepard, Chicago, June 21, 1870.

25 Temple S. Hoyne, ed., Proving of Carbolic Acid, by T. Bacmeister (Chicago,
1869). The item is no. 1541 in Check List of Chicago Ante-Fire Imprints.

MADELEINE B. STERN

437

were not overwhelmed by the great Chicago disaster of 1871.

On October 8 and 9, 1871, the great Chicago fire26 raged
through the city, bringing destruction to industry of all types,
and not the least to the book trade. The losses of that trade
were extremely heavy. Many of the smaller dealers were so
overwhelmed by the catastrophe that they were forced out of
business. Though the actual loss of plates and manuscripts was
comparatively light, the general loss to publishers was so great
that for a time they were discouraged from the experiment
of issuing new books that did not bear an Eastern imprint,
i Nearly every publisher was burned out, and many of the larg-
est bookstores fell together in smoking ruin. Wiping out
almost every building in the city, the fire did not spare locally
printed books and pamphlets, and those which did survive,
including some that bore a Keen or Cooke imprint, are classed
today as the relatively rare Chicago ante-fire imprints.

W. B. Keen & Cooke went down with their companions
in the trade. Insured for $130,000, they sustained a loss of ap-
proximately $175,000. Yet, though the firm’s establishment
. was totally destroyed by fire, trade was immediately resumed
in a temporary building on the lake
shore. The continuing prosperity of
the firm, even in its temporary quar-
ters, is indicated by a letter of October
1 2, 1872, from John Fairbanks to Lee
and Shepard. When Keen & Cooke
If were preparing to settle in their new
store, they offered Fairbanks the tem-
' porary quarters at a rental of $1,500 a

>jyear. Fairbanks, who had been connected with the American

26 For the fire, and its effects upon the book trade and upon Keen, Cooke, see
t Andreas, History of Chicago III: 684; Check List of Chicago Ante-Fire Imprints, Hi;
m Cooke, Publishers’ Weekly, Mar. 18, 1876, p. 379; Kirkland, The Story of Chicago,
8 289; 'The Stationery and Fancy Trades,” Publishers’ Weekly, Vol. I, no. 1 (Jan. 18,
I 1872) , 7; "Tribute to a Chicago Publisher,” Publishers’ Weekly, Vol. XXII, no. 19
|| (Nov. 4, 1882), 612; G. P. Upton, "Institutions of Art, Science, Literature,” The
Lakeside Monthly, Jan., 1872, p. 81.

From Letter by D. B.
Cooke to Lee and Shepard,
May 10, 1872 (Courtesy
Dr. Brigham).

438

KEEN & COOKE: PRAIRIE PUBLISHERS

Tract Society and later became a publisher in his own right, i
wished the advice of Lee and Shepard before making a deci- j
sion, and accordingly wrote as follows to the Boston firm:

I have this day heard of a good thing, and my Yankee pluck urges me
to avail myself of it. But I cannot without help. I will State the case. Soon
after the fire, Keen, Cooke & Co built a brick store on Wabash Avenue fori H
their retail trade. There they have stayed until the present, but on Nov 1st '
they intend to leave it for their new quarters back in the burnt district. This i
leaves the, Store for rent & Mr Cooke offered it to me for $1500. per year I
He Showed me his books, Showing that they had retailed there, in the past d
10 mos over $42,000. & he calculated that it would reach $75,000. by Jan 1st |
if they remained there. That Shows what can be done in that locality. To be
sure their name brought a great many customers, but it Seems to me, that if M
I continued right on there, I could retain a greater Share of the trade.27

Both their reputation and their prosperity followed Keen I
& Cooke to their new store on the old State Street site. By 1872, T
when many of Chicago’s businesses were returning to the j
"Burnt District,” a Chicago correspondent could make the fol- :
lowing almost paradoxical report on the firm:

Messrs. Keen, Cooke & Company are now taking the lead here in the l
general book trade. This is due, in a large measure, to their wise policy in j
providing themselves with spacious and convenient quarters immediately ;
after the fire, and thus having the stock room, and will to do all the business J
that came to them at a time when the other dealers were unfortunately
crowded into narrow and confined space. The result of the fire, therefore, has j
been rather to widely extend and stimulate their business than to cripple it.28

Through their own perspicacity and foresight Keen & Cooke |
had, for the time at least, wrested triumph from disaster.

Their new establishment, the Williams and Ferry Build- :
ing, presented to the city one of the finest marble fronts in
Chicago. It was planned with special reference to the book
trade, its five stories being shared by Keen and Cooke and A. S. |!
Barnes & Company. According to an enthusiastic reporter,

The retail department on the first floor, ... is beautifully and systemati-
cally arranged, the shelves on either side being apportioned according to their

27 MS, American Antiquarian Society. For Fairbanks’ activities, see the Chicago
directories of 1870-72 and 1874-75.

28 Publishers’ Weekly, Vol. II, no. 23 (Dec. 5, 1872), 631.

MADELEINE B. STERN

439

.respective importance to the various American and foreign publishers, and
the books therein being aphabetically arranged so that every clerk can lay
his hand on any book even in the dark. Busts of prominent authors, ancient
and modern, appropriately adorn and dignify these separate alcoves. The
room is lighted with reflectors . . . and all other appurtenances are of like
appropriateness and elegance.29

The basement was devoted to schoolbooks, stationery, and
inks, while the second story was used for packing and small
stationery. All the departments were connected, and communi-
: cation was by a steam elevator as well as by spacious stairways.

Altogether the establishment presents a very attractive appearance,
whether to the lover or purchaser of books, and excels, in outward appear-
ance at least, anything we have ever had in Chicago in the way of a book
store.30

The time had come in the annals of Keen, Cooke & Com-
ipany, when their combined knowledge of the publishing busi-
jness might yield results as successful as those that accrued to
jthem from bookselling. Even so seemingly an innocuous work
las David Swing’s Sermons, published by the firm in 1874, led
to a flurry of excitement. Jansen, McClurg & Company had
issued a selection of Swing’s sermons when the author stood
:rial for heresy. Hoping to share in the profits from the local
Dublicity, Keen and Cooke published Swings Sermons, the
plates of which they had bought from the Chicago Pulpit. As

ii result the firm incurred the wrath of the author, who pro-
:ested against the interference with his own arrangements for

(publication, as well as that of the rival company.31

Because of the publicity attending this work, Keen and
Zooke were ready to turn to less hazardous sources for their
publications. Both members of the firm had specialized in
publishing lawbooks. Both had shown an interest in the works
)f native writers. An opportunity soon presented itself for

20 Publishers’ Weekly, Dec. 5, 1872, p. 632.

30 Publishers’ Weekly, Dec. 5, 1872, p. 632.

31 For details regarding David Swing’s Sermons (Chicago, 1874), see "Literary
nd Trade News,” Publishers’ Weekly, Vol. V, no. 20 (May 16, 1874), 478, and
Morris, "The Publishing Activities of S. C. Griggs and Company,” 86.

440

KEEN & COOKE: PRAIRIE PUBLISHERS

uniting these two fields in publications that would be far :
more popular than any that had ever borne their imprints, u
Allan Pinkerton, the great detective, surely had legal connec- fa
tions, and his Detective Agency in Chicago had become one of
the city’s most famous institutions. His writings, therefore. )'
would have some legal interest, would represent the work of 1
a local celebrity, and, what is more, would enjoy a populai d
appeal that the Statutes of Illinois or the Chicago Charter could ii
never attain.

In November, 1874, Keen, Cooke & Company issued the i
first volume in a series of works by Pinkerton, entitled Them
Expressman and the Detective. The publishers prefaced the I
book with a notice, announcing that:

The present Volume is the first of a series of Mr. Allan Pinkerton’s!
thrilling and beautifully written Detective Stories, all true to life — founded®
upon incidents in the experience of the great chief of all detectives, . . . Thatii
these Volumes will meet with a cordial reception we have no doubt.32

The publishers’ high hopes were soon realized. In lessi
than sixty days after its publication, 15,000 copies of The Ex- j
pressman and the Detective had been sold, and later in 1875!
the total sale reached 20,000. Since "its almost unparalleled
success clearly showed not only the public interest in Mr.
Pinkerton, but, also, in the facts upon which the tale was!
founded,”33 the publishers were quick to issue further volumes
in the series. Claude Alelnotte as a Detective, and Other Stories j
consequently made its bow to the public, heralded by still
another notice from the publishers:

In presenting the second volume of Allan Pinkerton’s stories to the
public, the publishers need only refer briefly to the world-wide reputationj
of the author: his name is known everywhere throughout the United States,
Canada, and Great Britain as the Master Detective of the time, and his ex-j
perience in his profession has been so varied that he can verify, in many of|
the incidents of his own life, that "truth is stranger than fiction.”34

32 For further details of the firm’s Pinkerton publications, see the advertisement
in Publishers’ Weekly, Vol. VII, no. 22 (May 29, 1875), 582.

33 Allan Pinkerton, Claude Melnotte as a Detective, and Other Stories (Chica'g?)'.
1875), publishers’ notice.

34 Pinkerton, Claude Melnotte, publishers’ notice.

MADELEINE B. STERN

441

Beautifully illustrated with full-page engravings, bound
in the best style with black and gold ornamentation, the vol-
umes, priced at $1.50, were eagerly read by those who de-
lighted in the ingenuity of forgers and the investigation of
robberies. The Detective and the Somnambulist. The Murderer
land the Fortune Teller joined a series that had achieved a re-
ception "never before known in the annals of book publishing.

: . . . Sea-birds are not more invariably attracted toward a lighted
•beacon on a dark night”35 than readers to Pinkerton’s thrilling
■ detective stories. Advertised as popular books for summer
reading, these Keen, Cooke publications were for sale by all
booksellers, newsmen, and train boys in the United States, and
were joined by another work which doubtless appealed to the
same class of reader that consumed Pinkerton’s tales with such
■avidity, The Mysteries of the Head and the Heart Explained
[by Professor J. Stanley Grimes, the "Popular Lecturer.” "Buy
[this book,” readers were advised, "and you will not regret it.”36
For $2.00, they could learn all about phrenology, mesmerism,
trance, the spirit delusion, ghost-seeing, and mind-reading.
And in return, the State Street publishers, having catered to
'popular taste in books, could reap the rewards of their
enterprise.

Keen and Cooke demonstrated their industry and perspi-
jcacity during this period by still another device to stimulate
a general interest in books. Between 1874 and 1876, they pub-
lished The Owl, a literary monthly edited by William F. Poole
and designed to attract public attention to the latest activities
of the press. A four-page folio sheet, sold for twenty-live cents
a year and given free to librarians, The Owl was "the organ of
‘everything educational and elevational,” as well as of every-
thing pertaining to the State Street emporium. In addition to
brief notes on auction sales, lecture managers, and sundry

35 Pinkerton, Claude Melnotte, advertisement at end.

36 Pinkerton, The Detective and the Somnambulist (Chicago, 1875), advertise-
ment at end.

442

KEEN & COOKE! PRAIRIE PUBLISHERS

literary activities, the monthly included a list of new publica
tions and an "Editor’s Book Table,” which contained review?
of books that might be "found in the extensive stock” of W. B
Keen, Cooke & Company. Each issue was enhanced by a cut
of an owl on the first page and an oval vignette of the "editor’
viewing a variety of books. The monthly served the double
purpose of acquainting the public with the literary news of the
day and of advertising the publications and stock of Keer
& Cooke.37

In 1876, D. B. Cooke was able to take time to supply foi
Publishers’ Weekly an account of his "Memories of the Book
Trade.” In it he exalted "the glorious profession of circulating
good books,” and expressed in an interesting manner his book-
seller’s credo:

Taste and refinement are called for in every department of our trade. . . I
To be an educated bookseller in these latter days is something to be proud of ^
We are the almoners to the hungry souls who yearn for literary food. . . .

Let us not be weary in well-doing, and though we may meet with draw-: il
backs and pullbacks in various ways by "fire and flood,” we who have borneM
the burden in the heat of the day, may hope to reach a competence that wilijl
enable us to enjoy a good old age, ... in the midst of a prosperous business.3'!!

This hope was, unfortunately, not to be fulfilled. Though j
they had withstood the ravages of fire, another disaster wasjl
still to be faced from which the firm would not emerge un- 1
scathed. The Panic of 1873 had been followed by years of ex-T
treme business depression that affected industries throughout
the country. The Chicago book trade suffered along with other
businesses, and by 1877, despite the eager reception of the
Pinkerton series, the firm of Keen and Cooke could no
longer survive. The business and personal extravagances of the
members appear to have been contributing factors in their fail-i

37 The Owl, Vol. I, no. 3 (Dec., 1874), and Vol. II, no. 2 (Feb., 1876), file
at Yale University Library. For other periodicals in which D. B. Cooke & Company
and W. B. Keen, Cooke & Company were interested, see Franklin W. Scott, News-
papers and Periodicals of Illinois, 1S14-1879 ( Illinois Historical Collections, VI.
Springfield, 1910), 57, 70, 124.

38 Publishers’ Weekly, Mar. 25, 1876. 403-5.

MADELEINE B. STERN

443

ire, as a letter from A. D. Waldron, of Waldron, Niblock &
Company, coal dealers in Chicago, to William Lee, testifies:

Their failure was not a surprise to me, although I thought they would
vorry through the winter, but I was satisfied that they must eventually go to
he wall. . . .

You must bear in mind this is the third time this has occurred with them
.nd I am satisfied that this failure was unavoidable at this time — it might
lave been avoided by them had they done differently They are the most
xtravagant men for their means you ever saw — Their rent was $18,000 per
ear, reduced however somewhat recently by re-renting some portion of their
.partments — Their business expenses were enormous, extravagantly so — Their
>ersonal expenses, and of their families I refer now to the family of W. B.
Teen were lavish, and of a character that the present condition of affairs will
|fot justify in any one who owes money on which he is doing business.

I think they struggled as long as they could, & had at last to surrender —
, condition they might have avoided if they had commenced in season — I
-resume they may wish to make a compromise.39

The announcement that W. B. Keen, Cooke & Company
ad failed was made on January 27, 1877. Their liabilities were
bout $100,000 and their assets nominally much larger. A com-
promise was expected which would enable the firm to resume
1 usiness.40 On February 21, at a creditors’ meeting in the rooms
f the Stationers’ Board of Trade, the "compromise” was ar-
ranged, W. B. Keen agreeing to pay one hundred cents on the
f oliar by paying twenty-five cents in cash and the balance in
i-qual installments in one, two, and three years without inter-
st.41 The firm, however, did not resume business. Instead, two
ew firms emerged from the old one, that of W. B. Keen &
'.ompany, and that of D. B. Cooke & Company. For a short
me, in stores on Madison Street, the two establishments again
ursued their separate ways, W. B. Keen & Company devot-
ig itself exclusively to the wholesale jobbing trade in books
id stationery, and D. B. Cooke succeeding to the retail busi-
es of the old concern with a full stock of miscellaneous books
I

39 Feb. 6, 1877 (MS, American Antiquarian Society).

40 "Business Notes,” Publishers’ Weekly, Vol. XI, no. 4 (Jan. 27, 1877), 91.

41 Ibid., no. 9 (Mar. 3, 1877), 250.

444

KEEN & COOKE! PRAIRIE PUBLISHERS

including those which were described as particularly "rare an<

• > >42

curious.

It was not long, however, before both booksellers fount
that, while they had matched their own youth with that o
Chicago, expanding as the Midwest expanded, they could no!
survive the developments of a latter-day Chicago. The origina l
interests of W. B. Keen, Cooke & Company eventually passetj
into the hands of Charles H. Kerr & Company,43 which late
became known as a Socialist publishing house, and the naml
of Keen and Cooke was consigned to oblivion — save for it
imprints, its catalogues, and its letterheads.

In 1880, having abandoned the book trade forever, D. E
Cooke returned to his former employers, the American Expres:
Company, serving as manager of the order and commissioj
department and later as purchasing agent.44 W. B. Keen fo
lowed him into the commission field, acting for a time as con
mission merchant in the Chamber of Commerce.45 Death cu
short Cooke’s activities, for in October, 1884, he succumbol
to a heart ailment. Keen lived on until December 31, 1896
when, in his native city of Philadelphia, he followed the fool:
steps of his former associate for the last time.

During these years, though the name of Cooke was abser
from Chicago’s Booksellers’ Row, that of Keen still persistec
William B. Keen’s nephew, Joseph B. Keen, who had bee.
associated with the firm of Keen and Cooke, was connecte
with a succession of stationery and printing concerns, fror
that of Keen & Brown to that of Keen & De Lang, and th
present firm of De Lang, Coles and Company, commerce

42 "Business Notes,” Publishers’ Weekly, Vol. XI, no. 14 (April 7, 1877), 40 .

43 "Obituary Notes: Joseph B. Keen,” Publishers’ Weekly, Vol. LVIII, no.
(Aug. 11, 1900), 356.

44 For Cooke’s later association with the American Express, and his death, s<
Chicago directories, 1880-84; Chicago Times, Oct. 23, 1884; Publishers’ Weekly, 0(
25, 1884, p. 588; Stimson, History of the Express Business, 204.

45 For Keen’s commission business and death, see Chicago directories of 188

and. 1886; "W. B. Keen,” Chicago Tribune, Jan. 1, 1897 (courtesy Dr. Clarence I 'Ma
Brigham, American Antiquarian Society and A. B. Evans, Library of Congress
Publishers’ Weekly, Jan. 16, 1897, p. 57. I(l

MADELEINE B. STERN

445

printers, traces its history back to Brautigam and Keen.46 In
their own right, William B. Keen and David B. Cooke merit
a niche in the history of the Chicago book trade. They had not
only followed the westward march of civilization, but had
played a significant role in the expansion of the Midwest.

46 For these firms, see "Business Notes,” Publishers’ Weekly, Vol. XIX, no. 22
May 28, 1881), 563; Chicago directories of 1881-83 and 1888-94; Publishers’
I Weekly , Aug. 11, 1900, p. 356. Information from Mary-Serene Saxby, De Lang, Coles
nd Company, Chicago.

PIONEER ILLINOIS LIBRARY

BY R. LOUISE TRAVOUS

IT is reasonable to assume that a library had been establisheo ji
in Edwardsville before May 29, 1819, when the first issui ;
of Hooper Warren’s Spectator came off the local press. It ijl
certain the young town’s pioneer library was well beyond th(
infant stage before August of that year. Headed "Edwardsvilk |
Library” and signed "A Director,” the following appeared ir l
that newspaper’s columns on August 7, 1819:

It will no doubt be gratifying to the proprietors of this institution t(i
know that the books lately ordered from Boston have arrived. Those sub!
scribers who are in arrears it is hoped will come forward, and, by paying up|
entitle themselves and families to the use of one of the best collections o;
books in the country.

Four months later, November 30, 1819, Hooper Warreri
turned off his press "A Complete CATALOGUE of all the
Books now in, or belonging to, the EDWARDSVILLE LI
BRARY.” The one-page catalogue was "Drawn for the use
of the Share-holders, at the Library Room” by John H. Randle
Librarian. History books were in the majority — they were the
pioneers’ professional journals. These pioneers were making

Miss R. Louise Travous has long been actively interested in
the history of the area around her Edwardsville home. She has
accumulated an extensive collection of century-old publications and
also has a complete file of the Edwardsville Democrat (1881-1924) .
For thirty years she has made a practice of interviewing old-timers
for local historical data. Her literary work includes the writing and
production of "A Pageant of Fort Russell” (1811-1815), which was
presented in 1946 at the site of the old fort.

446

R. LOUISE TRAVOUS

447

history. They had fought wars establishing a nation and were
spreading that nation across a continent. The volumes num-
bered 216, listed as follows:

A complete
CATALOGUE
Of All The
BOOKS

Now In, or Belonging To, The
EDWARDSVILLE LIBRARY.

►American State Papers. . .in 12 vols.

Ferguson’s Roman Republic. .

do.

Adams’s Defence

do.

Federalist

do.

Burns’s Poems

do.

Guy Mannering

do.

iBigland’s England

do.

Gibbon’s Rome

,8 do.

iBlair’s Lectures

do.

Goldsmith’s Works

,6 do.

[Brydon’s Tour

do.

Grandpre’s Voyage

do.

Butler’s Hudibras

do.

Gil Bias

.4 do.

[Beauties of History

do.

partram’s Travels

do.

History of Carraccas

do.

jBelknap’s American Biography . 2

do.

History of Chili

do.

^British Spy

do.

History of Greece

do.

Hawksworth’s Voyage

do.

ICoelebs in search of a Wife. .

do.

History of Charles V

do.

tCowper’s Homer

do.

History of England

, 8 do.

Cowper’s Poems

do.

Humbold’s New Spain

do.

Campaign in Russia

do.

[Carver’s Travels

do.

J-

Camilla, or a Picture of Youth.

..3

do.

Jefferson’s Notes

do.

Clarke’s Travels

do.

Christian Researches in Asia.

do.

Clarkson’s History

do.

Letters of Junius

do.

Clark’s Naval History

do.

Marshall’s Life of Washington

)epon’s Voyage

do.

with Atlas

do.

domestic Encyclopaedia ....

do.

M’Fingal, a modern epic poem .

do.

Mayo’s Ancient Geography and

Cly’s Journal

do.

History, with Atlas

do.

Elements of Criticism

do.

Modern Europe

do.

448

PIONEER ILLINOIS LIBRARY

M’Leod on the Revelation .... 1 do.

M’Kenzie’s Voyage 2 do.

Moore’s Poems 1 do.

M’Nevin’s Swisserland 1 do.

Ossian’s Poems 2 do.

Practical Education 2 do.

Plutarch’s Lives 8 do.

Porter’s Travels 1 do.

Ramsay’s Washington 1 do.

Rob Roy 2 do.

Rollins Ancient History, with

Atlas 8 do.

Rumford’s Essays 3 do.

Robertson’s America 2 do.

Scottish Chiefs 2 do.

Sterne’s Works 5 do.

Scott’s Works 4 do.

Salmagundi 2 do.

Shakspeare’s Plays 6 do.

Spectator 10 do.

Tales of my Landlord

.2 do.

Telemachus

.2 do.j

Thaddeus of Warsaw

.2 dal

Travels of Anacharsis

.4 doil

Thomson’s Seasons

The True Ahiman Rezon. . . .

.1 dal

Turnbull’s Voyage

.1 do.

Universal Gazetteer

.2 do.i

Vicissitudes Abroad

.6 do.|

Volney’s America

. 1 do.S

Virginia Debates

Vicar of Wakefield

. 1 do.;

Views of Louisiana

. 1 do.i

Wirt’s Life of Patrick Henry.

. 1 do.i

Watts’s Logic

. 1 do.;

Wealth of Nations

.2 do.S

Wild Irish Girl

.1 do.

Young’s Night Thoughts. . . .

. 1 do.i

Zimmerman on National

Pride

. 1. do.

Drawn for the use of the Share-Holders,

At the Library Room, Edwardsville, Nov. 30, 1819-

JOHN H. RANDLE,

Librarian

H. Warren, Printer, Edwardsville

The date of the catalogue is also the date of a Spectator
notice: "Books for Sale.” Advertised as "the latest and most
approved editions,” to be applied for at the Spectator office,
were: three copies of volumes 11 and 12 of American State
Papers; Russell’s Modern Europe, five volumes; Laws of the
United States, five volumes; Blackstone’s Commentaries on the
Laws of England, four volumes. Who was offering the books
and why, we do not know. Unable to supply all the books

R. LOUISE TRAVOUS

449

)rdered by the library, the Boston book house may have made
inwanted substitutions. All the volumes of American State
Papers and Modern Europe were already on the shelves,
.aymen were not interested in legal technicalities and men
vith professional inclinations no doubt had their own Black-
tone and Laws of the United States. The consignment of
)Ooks had traveled a long and roundabout journey and to
eturn twenty volumes to Boston would possibly have strained
he library treasury.

On January 8, 1820, announcement was made in the
spectator of "A SPECIAL MEETING of the stockholders of
he EDWARDSVILLE LIBRARY” to be held a week from
hat day at two o’clock in the courthouse "for the purpose of
.mending the constitution; at which time the attendance of the
tockholders is respectively [sic] requested.” The following
December the Spectator again announced the annual meeting
[)f stockholders, at the courthouse on the first day of January
.t two o’clock, "when five directors will be elected for the
nsuing year.” By the next December (1821) the association
;ave appearance of being more prosperous. The December 4 is-
,ue of the Spectator announced that the annual meeting would
)e held at the Library Room on January 1, "precisely at 10
,'>’clock.” Previously the annual, paid notice was published in
but one issue of the paper, the week before the meeting. The
ppearance of the paid notice in all the December issues in-
iicates more funds and subscribers. Also, the association
[uarters were now sufficiently commodious to accommodate
. stockholders’ session, and certainly more comfortable than
he place of previous meeting — the earth-floored log-cabin
ourthouse warmed by a fire laid in one corner, the smoke
inding leisurely escape through a hole in the roof.

These were good years, the birth years of associations for
he increase of specific knowledge: oratory, drama, debate,
he Bible, agriculture, mechanics. The pioneers had grown
gregarious and remembered the years of the wars to rejoice in

450

PIONEER ILLINOIS LIBRARY

an anniversary occasion for dining, toasting, and singing toj|
gether; to listen deeply moved to a Revolutionary soldier’:
reading of the Declaration of Independence; to cheer the stir!'
ring passages of an elaborate oration. The Madison Count1!
seat was teeming with promise of coming to political, social
and cultural flower. The lace-ruffled territorial governo
Ninian Edwards went about in his carriage driven by a NegnB
coachman, stirring pioneer sons to dreams and ambition
Edward Coles, who had been private secretary to Presiden ;
Madison and had gone on a mission to Russia, was living a .
Tom Wilson’s tavern and gaining the admiration of those h( I
met as Register of the Land Office, which would make hin|
second governor of Illinois. Here lived United States Senator
Jesse B. Thomas, descended from Lord Baltimore, the bril
liant gentleman of Congress Daniel Pope Cook, the territorial
congressional representative Benjamin Stephenson. On a rural
estate lived the inspiring conversationalist Emanuel J. West 3
whom President Jackson would name minister to Mexico
There were lovely, gracious women in the families of these j
personages, and sons and daughters to be properly educated ]
At Madame de Jerome’s Academy of Science the young ladies ■
were given a course of study that included the French lan-:
guage, geography with the use of globes, drawing, and needle- !
work. Hiram Rountree, with "the best of recommendations]
as to his moral character,” was teaching young gentlemen andi
boys "the Greek and Latin languages and the higher branches
of Mathematics.”

In December, 1822, the proprietors of the library institu-
tion were again informed by the press of their annual meeting,
to be held at the Library Room on New Year’s Day. That the
stockholders had grown less eager and punctilious is indicated
by an added sentence, "Punctual attendance is requested.” Ap-
parently the morning meeting of the past January had not been
successfully attended, for the hour was returned to two. Per-;
haps the genuine Pittsburgh whisky James Miller was now sell-]'

R. LOUISE TRAVOUS

451

ing by the gallon was affecting New Year’s Day activities. This
is additionally indicated by the fact that there were no later an-
nouncements in the Spectator’s columns of an annual First of
January meeting. In fact no further notice of a library meeting
appears until nearly two years later. But it is to be inferred
■ from the following announcement, made March 1, 1825, by
Hail Mason, secretary pro tern, that there had been an annual
meeting earlier in 1825:

The stockholders of the Edwardsville Library, pursuant to an order made
• at their last annual meeting, are requested to meet at the dwelling house of
, J. T. Lusk, Esq. on Monday next at 2 o’clock P.M. for the purpose of transact-
ing business of great importance to the future prosperity of the institution. It
; is therefore expected there will be a prompt and general attendance.
f P.S. No forfeiture of shares has taken place yet, but the subject has been
!’ deferred till our next meeting.

A few weeks later, April 19, "D. Prickett and Wm. P.
[ McKee, committee,” announced in the Spectator :

A meeting of the stockholders in the Edwardsville Library is requested
I at the Library Room in Edwardsville on Saturday the 30th inst. at 4 o’clock
P.M. The forfeiture of shares for failure to pay the arrears due, can be saved
I by making payments on that day; otherwise all shares which were in
I arrears for one year on the first of January 1824, will be declared forfeited.
[ All arrears which accumulated before the first of January 1823, can be dis-
I charged in state paper at 50 per cent, discount.

David Prickett was a counsellor at law. Obviously the
[library association, now weak enough to be ingratiating, re-
l quired the direction of a legal mind. It was surely and rapidly
[declining into nonexistence, for that meeting of April 30,
1825, was apparently the last.

What the conditions were that brought the affairs of this
pioneer institution to legal hands we do not know. But we can
[{Conjecture. Perhaps new books had not been put upon the
shelves and the old volumes had all been read. Or expanding
; political, economic, social, and religious interests may have
I taken away the leisure and inclination for large-scale reading.
Books were being crowded out by livelier entertainment. The

452

PIONEER ILLINOIS LIBRARY

Edwardsville Singing Society was using music books from
Boston, The Madison County Agricultural Society was giving
premiums for the best specimen of malt liquor, for the greatest
quantity of proof spirit made from a given quantity of grain,
and for the largest number of wolf scalps. There were the
meetings of the Mechanics Society, and the Forum discussions
on such questions as "Was the assassination of Caesar by Brutus
commendable?” and "Would the emancipation of South
America from the present government of Spain be advanta- |
geous to the United States?” The Thespian Society was opening
its doors at early candlelight to present comedies and musical
farces, with repeat performances. Messrs. Ludlow and King, ;
of the St. Louis Theatrical Corps, were coming for three-night ;i
stands with entertainment "in the form of a Dramatic Olio.” I
And Mr. Leggett was delivering Shakespearian recitations at .1
the hotel of Mr. Wiggins. On at least one Sabbath a month cir- j
cuit riders stirred the pioneers’ souls to religious awakening, j
With Elijah Slater’s "Stage Waggon” stopping in Edwards- j
ville from Saturday evening until 6 o’clock Monday morning, j
the town was an intimate part of the larger world. Lawyers, |
land speculators, and travelers from far places kept the tavern i
candles burning late. Distances were diminishing. Men came \
from the Sangamon country, eighty miles away, for flour. If,
amid such activity, one had time to read, one could subscribe, j
at the Spectator office, for Woodworth’ s Literary Casket and |
Ladies’ and Gentlemen’ s Locket Magazine, published monthly, j;
And the weekly Spectator itself was filled with interesting j
fare.

It is very likely, also, that dissension had crept into the ji
library circle as a by-product of the numerous and vigorously i.
fought frictions affecting the town. There was the "old town”
versus "new town” controversy over the location of the county
buildings. There were the factions for Coles and against
slavery, and against Coles and for slavery; and differing
opinions made factions within factions. The presses of the

R. LOUISE TRAVOUS 453

antislavery Spectator and the proslavery Republican were
pouring out such venom that their publishers met for a duel
with horsewhip and pistol. There were the factions favoring
and opposing the State Bank, an issue brought more violently
aome because there was a branch of the bank in Edwardsville.

The spirited, uninhibited newspaper communications about
:hese disagreements provided more highly spiced reading than
many of the books on the library shelves. Petty quarrels, as well
[as the major disputes, were, so to speak, cheered on by the
press, which, at $1.00 a square for the first insertion and fifty
Scents for each subsequent publication, exposed to the public
bye whatever a vindictive person chose to write. It is plausible
i:o conjecture that personal and group antipathies spoiled the
'ariginal, pioneer unity of the library association.

All that remains, in addition to the Spectator notices, as
evidence of the existence of Edwardsville’s pioneer library is
:he framed catalogue of its 216 volumes which hangs in the
Edwardsville Public Library. Preserved by John T. Lusk, at
whose dwelling the unhappy meeting of March, 1825, was
peld, it is the only copy known to have survived the rise and
fall of what was probably the first library in Illinois.

LINCOLN’S OTHER BOSWELL

The dean of all sculptors of Abra-
ham Lincoln was Leonard Volk. His
name is on the tongue of every Lin-
coln student, yet few are familiar
with his face and we are therefore
glad to reproduce the rare picture on
the opposite page. The bust of Lin-
coln in this picture was produced
from a life mask that Volk made at
Chicago in the spring of 1860 —
shortly before Lincoln was nominated
for the presidency. During the
summer, and after the nomination,
Volk came to Springfield to make the
mold of Lincoln’s hand which shows
under the stool in the picture. When
he called at Lincoln’s Eighth and
Jackson streets residence the Presi-
dential candidate agreed to have the
casting taken and went to the wood-
shed to saw off the end of a broom
handle which he gripped while the
cast was made of his hand.

The story Volk told about the life

mask which was used as the basis for i I
the bust in the picture is more un- : I
usual. Volk’s Chicago studio was on |
the fifth floor of the Portland build- jl
ing. There were no elevators in those ||
days, and the sculptor heard Lincoln !!
coming upstairs two or three steps at ji
a time. In his studio Volk prepared i $
the necessary plaster of Paris cast and ;|
Lincoln held his face in it for an i|
hour — the time required for the ! I
plaster to harden.

Lincoln returned to the studio sev- |j
eral times before the job was fin- 1 !
ished. Of the last sitting Volk re- | j
vealed the following circumstances: |]

"I noticed that Mr. Lincoln was in I J
something of a hurry. I had finished ||
the head but desired to represent his jl
breast and brawny shoulders as nature I
presented them; so he stripped off his I
coat, waistcoat, shirt, cravat and col-
lar, threw them on a chair, pulled j
his undershirt down a short distance, 1

454

This picture is from a rare extra-illustrated volume titled Biographical
Sketches of the Leading Men of Chicago, in the State Historical Library.

455

456

LINCOLNIANA

tying the sleeves behind him, and
stood up without a murmur for an
hour or so. I then said that I was
done and was a thousand times
obliged to him for his promptness
and patience, and offered to assist
him to re-dress but he said: 'No, I
can do it better alone.’ I kept at my
work without looking toward him,
wishing to catch the form as ac-
curately as possible while it was
fresh in my memory. Mr. Lincoln left
hurriedly, saying he had an engage-
ment, and with a cordial 'Good-bye!
I will see you again soon,’ passed out.
A few moments after, I recognized
his steps rapidly returning. The door
opened, and in he came, exclaiming:
'Hello, Mr. Volk! I got down on the
sidewalk and found I had forgotten
to put on my undershirt, and thought
it wouldn’t do to go through the
streets this way.’ Sure enough, there
were the sleeves of that garment
dangling below the skirt of his broad-
cloth frock-coat! I went at once to
his assistance, and helped him to un-
dress and re-dress him all right and
out he went, with a hearty laugh at
the absurdity of the thing.”

The bust at the extreme right of

the picture is Volk’s Stephen A
Douglas — a statue which gave th
sculptor renown before Lincoln’s ris <
to importance. Douglas was a cousi l
of Volk’s wife, and as Senator ha
helped the young sculptor go to Itali
to study art. Volk returned in 1855 fc
and his first work was the bust of hi®
patron, which was exhibited in timjl
for the Lincoln-Douglas debates.

Volk also designed the Douglajl
Monument, a photo of which appear®
in the upper right hand corner of thl |
picture. Standing above the Illinoi! I
Central Railroad tracks at the foot ojjl
35 th Street, this statue, erected i||
1879, is said to be the oldest sculp®
tured monument in Chicago. It is ajfl
the site of Camp Douglas, Civil Wa: ;-j
prison pen, built on what was theill
the city’s outskirts. At one time Chill
cagoans feared that the large numbel
of Confederate prisoners might breal I
jail and capture the city. This site wa 1
once owned by Douglas and wa
given by him for the first building!
of the old University of Chicago)!
On top of the shaft Douglas look
from his elevated position across th<
tracks of the railroad which he helpec
to organize.

JAY MONAGHAN. I

GOLD RUSH FEVER HITS MOUNT MORRIS

The following account of Illinois a hundred years ago and of the gold
rush was written on December 20, 1916, by Upton Swingley who titled it
"A Brief Chronicle of My Life.” Mr. Swingley died at his home at 1006
North Church Street, Rockford, on June 13, 1919. It will be found that the
details of his story differ slightly at times from other versions. The
Journal is indebted to Loring C. Halberstadt, director of business and research
of the Terre Haute, Indiana, Public Schools and president of the Vigo
County (Indiana) Historical Society, for this article:

I was born in Washington County,
’ Maryland, Sept. 18, 1834. My father,
Nathaniel Swingley, was born in
Washington County, Maryland, in
I 1807, and my mother in 1809 in the
I same county. She was the daughter
j of John Sharer.

My father, with his family of five
j boys and two girls, moved to Ogle
j County, Illinois, in 1838. He located
between Oregon and Mt. Morris,
about one mile out from where the
present town of Mt. Morris is located.
There were no towns in this part of

the country at that time, and we had
but few neighbors.

In 1839 the cornerstone for the
Rock River Seminary was laid. This
institution was located out in the
open country, and around it was after-
wards built up the town of Mt. Mor-
ris. My father donated twenty acres
of land to the Methodist Church for
the site of the seminary.

When five years of age, I started
attending a school about a mile west
of the present site of Mt. Morris,
which was composed of the children

437

458

HISTORICAL NOTES

of four families. The teacher, A. Q.
Allen, lived at my father’s house, and
took us children to school and back
in a wagon with board wheels.

After attending school here for
about three years, I was sent to a
school located at Phelps’ Grove, about
two miles east of our home, which I
attended until I was about eleven
years of age. In this school, we had
no desks. Our seats consisted of
slabs, which were first cut off of a
log, with stakes set in for legs. In
the winter we were allowed to take
these seats out, turn them upside
down, and coast on a hill near by,
until we broke several of the seats,
when the teacher put a stop to it.
When we could no longer use these
seats, we brought sleds from home.
At the foot of this hill was a large
open spring. One day a Negro girl
wanted my sled to coast down the
hill. I wouldn’t let her have it, but
as she insisted on riding, I let her get
on the sled in front of me, and down
the hill we went. I steered the sled
into the spring, and then slipped off.
She got a good wetting, and I got a
good thrashing for it.

In 1845 my father moved with his
family to Brawdie’s Grove, two miles
north of where Creston is now lo-
cated. Our nearest neighbors then
lived seven miles to the north of us.
A family by the name of Flagg lived
at Hickory Grove, where Rochelle
was afterwards built. To the south
of us, the nearest neighbor was at
Paw Paw, twenty miles away; to the
east, Huntley’s Grove, twelve miles,
where De Kalb is now located.

At that time this part of the coun-
try was infested by a band of robbers

and horse thieves, known as the Dris-W
coll gang. They became so desperate Si
that a Vigilance Committee was or-J
ganized to rid the country of them,i
and Mr. [John] Campbell, who lived j
at Campbell’s Grove, now known as:(
Lindenwood, was chosen captain of i|
the Committee. The Driscolls lived
at Driscoll’s Grove, later called South?
Grove. There were several boys in
the family. One Sunday evening two \
of these boys went to Campbells i, :
house, called him out, and shot him f i
dead in the presence of his wife. 5
This so aroused the country, that the I
Vigilance Committee went to the ;
home of the Driscolls and arrested *
the father and one son, William,!
neither of whom had taken a direct I
part in the shooting. They were
taken to Oregon, which then wasB
composed of a couple of houses, but!
was called the county seat. They were j M
tried, convicted, and executed in one )
day, the execution taking place in a I
grove east of Daysville. They stood i •
blindfolded on a mound and were j X
shot by twelve men belonging to the 1 1
Committee. This determined action I
cleared the country of the robbers. ; |
Brawdie’s Grove was a very dense f
one, making a good place to secrete |
horses. At one time a hollow tree i
was found filled with twenty-three j i
saddles. My father bought the claim I a
of old man Brawdie, who was a !
brother-in-law of Driscoll, and who j
left with the Driscolls. He paid him j
$500 for his claim, which consisted |
of 200 acres of grove, and then moved
his family into the old Brawdie shanty
until he could build a better home.

We had to go to Driscoll’s Grove
for our mail, which was carried by

HISTORICAL NOTES

459

stage running from Chicago to Ga-
lena. This was my job, riding across
the prairie on a pony, but in the
winter time I went for it but once
a month.

I assisted my father in farming his
i land, which was hard and unprofitable
work, as we had no improved ma-
: chinery and used oxen. The land
: was not even fenced, and at night the
:oxen were turned out to graze. In
the morning, it was my duty before
: breakfast to get the oxen, which some-
, times would have wandered off two
or three miles during the night.

Our nearest market was Chicago,
.seventy miles away, which was then
a town of about 5,000, built on the
: waterfront of Lake Michigan. No
effort had yet been made toward
■ modern improvements, the streets
being unpaved and often very muddy,
and the sidewalks only of boards. We
idrew our grain to Chicago with oxen,
which meant a trip of about ten days.
We carried our provisions with us,
and never ate or slept in a house dur-
ing the entire trip. We would haul
;a load of wheat to Chicago and get
[.fifty cents a bushel for it, bringing
■back such provisions as we could not
i; raise ourselves. I was about twelve
years of age when I made my first
I journey to Chicago. There was just
one house between what is now Oak

IPark and Chicago, and this was a
lotel, which was run by a man who
)wned it and forty acres of land. A
nan named Trask stopped at this
lotel one night. In the morning the
proprietor wanted to trade Trask his
louse and land for his guests four
lorses and wagon. Trask laughed at
lim, saying he wouldn’t take his land
.s a gift.

The Pottawatomie Indians were
located in Northern Illinois, and used
to spend their summers in the grove
near our home. The chief’s name
was Shabbona, and the town of Shab-
bona on the C. B. & Q. Railroad was
later named after this chief.

In the spring of 1850 my father,
getting the gold fever in his veins,
organized a company of twelve men,
most of whom came from the vicinity
of Mt. Morris, to take the trip over-
land to California. I was fifteen
years old at that time, and was in-
cluded in the number to cross the
plains. Our outfit was in common,
and included eight yoke of oxen and
two wagons; four horses and one
wagon; two mules and one wagon;
two horses and one buggy, and a pony
for me to ride. Uncle Josh Thomas
went to St. Louis and bought our
supplies, which consisted principally
of bacon, crackers, and hardtack. This
he shipped up the Missouri River,
meeting the rest of us at the present
site of Council Bluffs. We started
from home the 8th day of March,
going to the Missouri River, where
Council Bluffs is now located, where
we remained for three weeks waiting
for the grass to grow. The Pawnee
Indians were camped on the east side
of the river and the Omaha Indians
on the west. There was not a white
settlement west of the Missouri River.
There were 10,000 emigrants camped
there at that time, waiting for the
grass, so that they could start out on
the plains westward. We formed a
company of 120 men with 40 wagons,
of which my father was chosen cap-
tain. We crossed the river on the
6th day of May, swimming our stock
and taking the wagons by ferry.

460

HISTORICAL NOTES

I shall never forget the first night
we camped among the Omaha In-
dians. We formed a corral by plac-
ing our wagons in a circle the length
of a long chain apart, and putting
the stock in this enclosure, guarding
them with two men the fore part of
the night and two in the after part.
It fell to my lot to be chosen to go
on duty the after part of the night,
which was a very serious matter for
me; but I marched back and forth,
thinking every minute that Indians
would attack us. In the morning, the
boys wanted to know what I would
have done, if the Indians had put in
an appearance, and I said I would
have shot them. They said, "Yes,
you would, your gun wasn’t loaded.”
That morning a crowd of Indians
came to our camp, begging for some-
thing to eat. One of our boys had
a dog that he traded to the Indians
for a pair of moccasins. The Indians
knocked the dog in the head, threw
him on the campfire and roasted him,
head and all, and then carried him
off to their camp. We saw much of
Indian habits and ways of living as
we traveled through twelve different
tribes. We journeyed up the Platte
River for 500 miles through a country
where there were buffaloes in droves
by the thousands. We lived on buf-
falo meat.

The Sioux Indians were on the
Platte River; one of the largest and
most warlike tribes, having about
2,000 warriors. They were very so-
ciable and tried to talk the English
language, but all they could say was
what they had heard the men say to
their oxen, and this was mostly cuss-
ing. They would come up to you,

extend their hand to salute you, andB
say, "Whoa Haw, Damn you,” whichjj
was about all the English language*
they knew.

We made slow progress crossings
the Rocky Mountains, averaging;! i
about ten miles a day. We went
north of Salt Lake City on what was
known as Sublette’s Cut Off and downf i
the Humboldt River 400 miles toll
where it terminated in a lake seven* I
miles wide and twenty miles long.; |
that had no outlet, but sank into the? I
sand of the desert. From this lake we
crossed the desert ninety miles ton
Carson River, and on this desert we 1
lost the most of our stock We had: ji
seven head of cattle and two mules: |
when we reached Carson River, andji
our provisions had completely givenll
out. We killed one of our oxen j fl
stripped the meat from the bonesjl
and jerked it by drying and smoking; I
over a slow fire. This was all we had! I
to eat fifteen days while crossing; I

the Sierra Nevada Mountains, and! I

we had to walk most of the way.

We arrived in Hangtown in Placer I
County, which is now Placervillej
about 150 miles northeast of Sacraj
memo, on August 26, 1850, which
would make about six months on the
road. This was a mining camp
where there was flour and salt pork
for sale. Our first meal for twelve!
men cost $58.00. Flour was sold atj
$1.50 a pound and pork $1.25.

We worked in the mines until
1852. Father and I then joined 2
company to go on horseback across
the mountains and desert to the Sink
of the Humboldt, which was about
800 miles, to buy emigrants’ stock
and recruit them. We were gone

HISTORICAL NOTES

461

about three months, returning with
about 300 head of cattle, horses, and
mules. We sold our interest in this
stock and started for home on No-
vember 10, 1853.

We returned by way of the Ocean,
■ paying $400 apiece for tickets to
•New York. We left the boat at
Panama, and walked across the Isth-
mus. We were fourteen days from
iSan Francisco to Panama, and I was
very sick for thirteen days. When
;we anchored at Panama, we were out
t about four miles and were taken from
j:the vessel by the natives in little
t boats to the shore. We had to swim
-the Chagres River, which we did
with our clothes on. I had in my
* pocket while swimming the river,
,:the watch which I still carry, and it
idid not stop running. We took a
. boat again at Aspinwall on the At-
lantic side for New York. The trip
itook eight days, and my father was
Jtaken sick on the way with Panama
| fever. At that time they were build-
ing the Panama Railroad, and we had
■a number of railroad builders aboard
;jthe boat, five of whom died with this
jl fever, and were buried at sea. There
It was a railroad from New York to
^Rochester, which was very fortunate
;for us, as I had a very sick father on
[jmy hands. At Rochester we took the
ttboat that went to Detroit. From
: | Detroit we took the railroad to Chi-
cago, going from there to Rockford
ijbver the Chicago and North Western
[Railroad, which was built to Rock-
i :ord in 1853. This was the first rail-
road built west of Chicago. The rails
vere made out of oak scantling with
’.trap iron nailed on top, and it took
line hours to go from Chicago to
Rockford.

We stayed all night in Rockford
at the City Hotel, which was located
where the Forest City Bank now
stands. As father was still very sick,
we had to hire a wagon, in which he
could lie down, to get him to his
home. He was sick for about four
months of this fever.

As my schooling had been some-
what neglected, in the fall of 1854 I
thought I would take a course in
higher education, so I went to Beloit
College. I experienced my first feel-
ing of homesickness here, as I found
myself surrounded by too much civili-
zation. The President of the college
at that time was a man by the name
of [Aaron L.] Chapin. We met every
morning at 6: 30 in the college chapel
for prayers. As this was not very
interesting to me, I decided to enliven
the meeting, so, with the assistance
of the janitor, a colored man, we put
an old hen into the professor’s desk
in the chapel. In the morning, when
he opened his desk to get the Bible,
the hen flew out and furnished one
interesting meeting.

The winters of ’56 and ’57 I spent
in Rockford, attending Burnham’s
Commercial School, which was over
the Chick House. During that winter
a man named Countryman was tried
for murdering Sheriff Taylor, and
convicted. Our school was dismissed
for a week to attend the trial and also
the execution, which took place about
three miles west of Rockford. I grad-
uated from this school with high
honors, receiving diplomas for double
entry bookkeeping, engineering, and
steamboating. I made use of my en-
gineering and steamboat education
by working on the farm with my
father.

462

HISTORICAL NOTES

In 1858 I was married to Frances
Potter, and commenced farming on
part of father’s farm which I bought.
I worked this farm until the year
1875. My daughters, Carrie, Minnie,
Grace, and Lida were born while liv-
ing there. Their mother died in 1870.

In 1871 I was married to Sophia
Woodward Byers, who was the
mother of Upton L. Swingley. We
went on a wedding trip to California
over the Union Pacific Railroad,
which had been recently completed.
This road followed the old trail that
we took when making our trip across
the plains. We were in Salt Lake
City at the time of the Chicago fire,
and while there heard Brigham
Young preach. The Mormons were

holding a semi-annual council meets
ing at that time, and the Mormons ®
from all over the valley were attend! .
ing that meeting. The construction}
of the Mormon Temple was just#
being started. Upton’s mother died
in 1873, shortly after we moved tc#
Creston.

In 1875 I was married to Henrietta*
Thomas Brown. We lived in the#
Storms house, while we were building#
our new home, and Howard was bornj ::
in the Storms house. We moved™
into the new house in 1876, where#
Gertrude was born.

In 1892 we moved to Rockford in-

to our present home on North Church!!
Street.

UPTON SWINGLEY,
DECEMBER 20, 1916

Iirno

"THE DESERT SHALL REJOICE . .

This beautiful farm ["Larch Farm”] is located on the line of the Illinois
Central railroad, about a mile north of Onarga, and is the property of Allan
Pinkerton, the renowned detective.

Mr. Pinkerton is a native of Scotland. He was born in 1819, in Gorbaes,
Glasgow, and in 1842 when twenty-three years of age, he came to the United
States, locating in the state of Illinois. ... In 1873 Mr. Pinkerton determined
upon the carrying out of an idea which had long occupied his mind, and
to cultivate a prairie farm which would be the acme of western rural develop-
ment. . . . And after seven years of labor and a lavish expenditure of money,
"Larch Farm” has become the "model” farm of Iroquois county. The dwelling-
j house which has been erected is a large, commodious, one-story square struc-
ture, surmounted by a cupola, with an addition attached to the north side.
In appearance the house resembles very much the residences which graced
the plantations of the south before the rebellion spread its desolating effects
[over that region of our country. The interior is supplied with every modern
improvement for comfort, while the furniture and adornments combine all
the ideas which wealth, refinement and luxury can suggest.

The progress in the cultivation of the land is indeed a marvel of agri-
mltural ability, and evinces in a marked degree the results which may be
Accomplished by good taste, untiring energy and a liberal, but wisely directed,
expenditure of money. Through the operation of these influences the prairie

I desert has been made to blossom as a rose.

The entire farm, which is nearly rectangular in shape, is inclosed with

I I luxuriant close-trimmed hedge of osage orange trees, while inside of this

463

West Lane Leading to the Pinkerton House

These European larch trees were a part of Detective Allan Pinkerton’s
original landscaping of his farm and were planted more than sixty yearsj
before this picture was taken. A photograph of the exterior of the house
and the story of the building itself are in John Drury’s book, Old Illinois
Houses, pages 191-93. Pictures of the Civil War murals which decorate
the interior were published in the December, 1948, issue of this Journal, foi
the article "Lincoln and Pinkerton” by Lloyd Lewis.

464

ILLINOIS SCRAPBOOK

465

hedge there have been planted seven rows of larch trees (from which the
farm takes its name), set at the distance of four feet apart. The railroad inter-
sects the land from north to south, and on each side of this the same arrange-
ment of osage orange and larch trees has been observed. Two broad driving
avenues have been laid out across the farm from north to south and from
east to west, and along these drives are planted innumerable evergreen trees,
set in a double row upon each side, while immediately behind these are
ranged the seven rows of larch trees, set at the distance above mentioned.
The edges of these avenues are ornamented with a bordering of bright
blooming flowers from end to end, the effect of which is beautiful to behold.

Some idea of the magnitude of this labor, all of which has been done
under Mr. Pinkerton’s direction, may be obtained from the fact that over
1,000 evergreens and 85,000 larch trees have been planted by the energetic
owner of "Larch Farm.” Along the main roads and those leading to the
house there have also been planted rows of maple trees, whose bright green
foliage considerably enhances the beauty of the place. The lawn immediately
surrounding the house, which consists of more than four acres, has been most
beautifully and tastefully arranged. Serpentine walks of graceful curvings,
with their firm beds of coal cinders, which have been brought from a great
distance, and their brilliant borderings of blooming flowers, numerous flower-
beds of most varied and beautiful shapes, and a liberal distribution of marble
and terra-cotta vases of unique design, filled with brilliant-hued flowers and
rare plants, all contribute to the production of a scene of beauty which is
the theme of universal admiration and a source of pleasure and delight to
their liberal-minded owner. The beauty of the lawn is further enhanced by
an artificial lake, 100 feet long, immediately in rear of the house, which
glistens in the morning sun, or in which, during the long evenings, the rays
of the moon are brightly reflected. A dainty white boat which sails upon its
surface affords amusement to the numberless visitors to the farm.

The outbuildings evince the same regard for beauty and durability.
The greenhouse, which already contains over 2,000 plants of unlimited
variety, and which is to be immediately supplemented by another of the same
capacity, is a source of wonderment and pleasure to the visitors from the
surrounding neighborhood, to whose inspection, as well as the entire grounds,
they have been opened by the courtesy of Mr. Pinkerton. The barns, stable,
corn-crib (probably the largest in the county) and ice-house are in perfect
accord with their surroundings, and are remarkable for their neatness, strength
and durability. There is also to be erected a fruit-house of large dimensions
during the summer.

An artesian well has been sunk upon the premises to the depth of one

466

ILLINOIS SCRAPBOOK

hundred and thirty feet, which is surmounted by a wind-mill thirty-seven feet
high, of the most recent invention, and which furnishes the house with a
supply of water amply sufficient for drinking, washing and culinary purposes,#
and for the bath-rooms contained within the dwelling. Mr. Pinkerton has also '
set out about 2,000 apple trees, all of which give evidence of thrift and of
abundant yields in the very near future, and in addition to these orchards1
there are a great number of pear, quince and cherry trees, all giving sure
indications of fruitfulness.

The fruit and vegetable gardens contain almost every known variety,;
and receive the careful attention of an experienced gardener. The fields have
been confined to the production of corn and oats, and have thus far yielded: •:
abundant harvests.

Disconnected from the farm proper, but in close proximity thereto, is
another tract of land belonging to Mr. Pinkerton, which contains a straw- i
berry bed of large dimensions, and fruit trees in great number and variety. >s
In order to accomplish this gigantic labor Mr. Pinkerton employs the ser-
vices of ten men during the entire year, while in the spring this force is
augmented to double that number, and the result of this labor is manifest in
the growing beauty of the place and the luxuriant harvests which are annually |
gathered.

Altogether, "Larch Farm” is one of the great features of Iroquois county, \ I
and its owner one of the most energetic, tasteful and liberal gentlemen of i
the community.

H. w. BECKWITH, History of Iroquois
County (Chicago, 1880), Pt. 1:434-37.

ADVICE TO EMIGRANTS

I had heard much of the backwoodsmen, and supposed, of course, I j
should find many of them in Illinois; but after diligent search, I found none j
that merited the appellation. The race has become extinct. Who are the j
inhabitants of Illinois? A great portion of them, from the north, recently j
settled there, and of course, possessing the same hospitality, sobriety and edu- j
cation as the northern people. They went out from us; but they are still of
us. A person will find as good society there, as here; only not so much of it. |
The upper house on Fox river settlement, was occupied by an intelligent and I
refined family, recently from Massachusetts.

Meeting houses and school houses are rare, owing to the sparceness of |
the inhabitants; but the country is settling rapidly, and these deficiencies will
soon be supplied. Indeed, so rapidly is the country settling, that in writing

ILLINOIS SCRAPBOOK

467

this account of it, I sometimes feel like the man who hurried home with
his wife’s bonnet, lest it should be out of date, before I could get it finished.

Emigrants, going to settle at the West, with their families, would do
well to take their beds, bedding, a moderate supply of culinary utensils, the
most essential of their farming tools, and a good supply of clothing. These
articles are all high there, and somewhat difficult to be obtained. The more
: cumbersome of household furniture, such as chairs, tables, bedsteads, &c. are
not so essential; because their place can be supplied by the ruder articles of
domestic manufacture. In the new settlements, most of the families had
I? chairs or benches, tables and bedsteads, made on the spot by the husbandmen.

Provisions are cheap, but vary in price according to the demand. Corn,
at Beardstown, is worth twelve and a half cents a bushel; at Hennipen [sic'},
twenty-five cents; and on the Fox river fifty cents; and other articles in
proportion.

When the settler arrives at his location, his first business is to build a
log house, which is soon done; then fence in a field, and it is ready for the
plough. The prairie breaks up hard at first, requiring four yoke of oxen; but
i: after the first breaking a single horse can plough it. A good crop is produced
>- the first year; but better in succeeding years. He had better hoe his Indian
[ corn. It keeps the ground clear of weeds, and increases the crop, but half of
[ the cornfields are not hoed at all.

In the fall of the year, he must take especial care that his crops, stacks of
I hay, fences, &c. are not burnt, in the general conflagration of the prairies.

To prevent this, as good a method as any is to plough two or three furrows
| around his improvements, and at a distance of about two rods plough as
i many more; and in a mild day, when the grass is dry, burn over the space
| between. If he neglects this, he must keep a good look out in a dry and windy
[. day. If he sees a smoke to windward, it will not do to wait until he can see
l; the fire; but must summon all hands, and set a back fire. With a strong breeze,
r fire will sometimes run over the dry prairies faster than a horse. The inhabi-
tants are often too negligent in this particular. While I was there a number
hof stacks of hay and grain, and two or three houses were burnt, from the
h mere negligence of their owners.

A. A. PARKER, Trip to the
West and Texas (1835), 12-1 A.

SALTILLO

One finds it difficult to realize, after a short residence here, that he is
I! really in an enemy’s city, surrounded by foes. Every thing glides along so
I smoothly, calmly, and peacefully, we feel as secure in walking the streets at

468

ILLINOIS SCRAPBOOK

night as we should in any American city. Much — indeed all of this is doubt-
less owing to the admirable management of Governor Warren, and the com-;
mendable conduct of the troops stationed here. We speak of Col. Warren1 i
with pride as an Illinoian, a man to do honor to his state. By his skill, tactij,
or whatever it may be called, he has managed to establish perfect confidence! j<
between the Americans and Mexicans, and no two races with so wide aji
distinction between them, ever lived together on more friendly terms. Then |
no city in the world can be more admirably policed. Drunkenness, rowdyism,; 1:
the public gambling house, even the loathsome fandango — every thing of :
the sort is completely banished. The troops stationed here are Capt. Webster’s2 $
artillery company in the fort, Capt. Prentiss’3 artillery at the Convent, and the; |
odd battalion composed of Capt. Morgan’s4 and Capt. Prentiss’ companies of j;
the 1st Illinois regiment, in barracks near the plaza.

For their good conduct all these companies are deserving of high; jj
praise; but we will be excused, as Illinoians, for speaking more particularly1!
of the volunteer companies on whom the policing of the city most heavily! H.
rests. No two companies in the service, volunteers or regulars, have attained; I
a higher perfection of drill and discipline. To see them drill on the square — 1 1
going through every conceivable manoeuvre with the utmost rapidity and :
precision — is sufficient not only to "astonish the natives,” but to astonish |
and elicit the admiration of veteran officers in the army. Capts. M. & P. may^ I
well be proud of their companies, as the companies are so justly of their L'
commanders.

The Ticket Guard, April 19, 1847. (This very rare!
camp newspaper was published at Saltillo, Mexico, by two!
Illinois soldiers, William and Moses Osman, of Ottawa.!
Copies of six of its seven issues are in the Illinois State His-
torical Library. Pictures of United States troops at Saltillo,
believed to be the first war photographs ever made, werep
reproduced in the December, 1948, Journal.)

"COUNTRY CORRESPONDENCE”

DECATUR, ILL., JUNE 17, 1853

Editor Courier — Dear Sir: — I see by a short editorial in your valuable;
daily of the 10th inst., that you are desirous of receiving occasionally, a!
communication from "country correspondents,” and, if this should prove;
worthy of an insertion in your columns, you will favor me by so doing.

1 William B. Warren, Alton, 111.

2 Lucien Bonaparte Webster, of Vermont.

3 Benjamin M. Prentiss, Alton, 111.

4 James D. Morgan, Alton, 111.

ILLINOIS SCRAPBOOK

469

Decatur, where this communication hails from, is a beautiful village,
located on an elevated prairie near the margin of the "Sangamon timber.”
It contains a population of over 1200 and continues improving with that
rapidity railroads are calculated to produce. Our town at present is very
healthy — no sickness — the doctors having nothing to do but to catch fish
and sit on store boxes whittling pine sticks. They say it is "distressingly
healthy.”

The work on the great Illinois Central Railroad is progressing rapidly;
a very large force of hands are daily employed. It is expected that this road
will be completed to this place by the 1st of January next. The "Northern
Cross Road,” is now in the hands of an energetic company, and every thing
indicates that this road will be completed from Springfield to this place by
the first of March 1854. When a connection is made with your road, you
may look out for a heavy trade from this section of the country. Alton
appears to be the point, and is talked off [sic] by scores of our inhabitants.
I cannot see why your citizens will not be able to compete with the mighty
city of St. Louis. You certainly have the facilities. The Railroad from Indian-
apolis to Decatur will be built, and that too in less than two years. This
road when completed, will be one of the best paying roads in the West.
It will also have a tendency to build up your flourishing city, as it will connect
with the "Alton and Sangamon road.”

Our village is frequently thrown into confusion by reports that the
Irish are determined to burn it down. A volunteer company has been formed
of a number of our best citizens, to prevent disturbances. The Irish laborers
have driven almost all the Dutch from our midst. They will not permit them
to work on either of our roads.

Three contractors, Rose, Rice & Co., abscounded [sic] from this place on
Sunday night last, indebted to our citizens and laborers upwards of two
thousand dollars. This was a premeditated act, for the day before they de-
parted they borrowed all the money they could and purchased on "tick” any
amount of goods. They were looked upon as honorable men before this
transaction, and could have got on credit an unlimited sum. They were en-
gaged on the "Northern Cross Road.” Also, about the same time, another
scoundrel, Beard, assuming the name of a contractor on the "Central,” left
for parts unknown, deeply indebted to our citizens. Such figures as the above
rascals have cut will be a good lesson for the "rest of mankind” to be cautious
who they deal with in the future.

I have seen quite a number of farmers of this county, and a few from
Piatt, Moultrie, Logan, DeWitt and Christian, and I am happy to inform
you that they report the wheat and corn crops favorable. Wheat in particular

470

ILLINOIS SCRAPBOOK

looks very flattering, and it is my opinion the yield this harvest will be
unusually large. The apple, peach, cherry, &c., are nearly breaking down with
fruit. The rose bugs are destroying nearly all the grapes in this section of

country. Your country friend, J. S.

The Alton Weekly Courier, June 24, 1853.

"NOTES FROM THE WEST”

BELVIDERE, ILL., AUG. 1846.

After several detentions waiting for steamboats, and grounding upon! ji
sand-bars, I again found myself on board a steam boat, and "under way.” ' Is
But I have been too long on the river. For several weeks the weather had i
been exceedingly warm, the thermometer ranging from 90, to 98 deg., the I
water was unusually low, exposing immense masses of putrifying matter to ; •>
the action of the sun, and imparting activity to every cause of disease. On the |
morning of the 10th, I awoke with a burning fever, but through divine •
favor, we were near Hannibal in Mo., a place at which I had intended to i|j
stop. Here I landed, I was welcomed to the habitation of Mr. F. Levering, 1 1
who with his amiable lady, bestowed upon me all the attention which I 1
could have received in my own family. By prompt and vigorous medical ; |
treatment and the unremitting care of brother and sister Levering and j
other friends, the fever was speedily broken up and I was relieved from t
great suffering. Being as they say here, ff powerful weak,” I was obliged to i
remain several days in this dear family, and parted from them at last, with
a sense of obligation and feelings of affection which will endear them to me :
through the remainder of my life. . . .

At Quincy, 111., Rev. S. Parr, formerly of the state of New York, is !
laboring. This is one of the most pleasant and thriving villages on the j
Mississippi. A few years ago the church in that place, few and feeble, i
sought and obtained the aid of the Home Mission Society. By that aid they j
have been effectually strengthened. They have a good house of worship :
near the centre of the city, which with a little brushing up, would be quite j
creditable to the church; they are out of debt, and liberal contributors in I
the cause of benevolence.

Jacksonville is another flourishing village, in the interior. Rev. A. Bailey, j
is pastor of the church in that place, and editor of a very valuable religious
paper — the Western Star. Its influence in religious and social interests, is
decidedly beneficial. Here also, with Home Mission aid, and the blessing of
God, the church is gaining strength. They have recently completed a very
good house of worship. I regretted extremely to find brother Bailey in the
hands of a physician, being very sick of a fever. . . .

ILLINOIS SCRAPBOOK

471

I was obliged to pass on to Springfield, the capital of the State, where I
1 remained two or three days recruiting my strength. This is a lovely place and
offers a fine field of labor for some well quallified {sic'} minister. Such an
one — one who is capable of ministering to such a class of mind as is usu-
ally found congregated in such a place, would find the nucleus of a church
; already formed, and ready for enlargement. They own a beautiful lot in the
| very heart of the village, and a temporary place of worship on its rear. When-
ever the man appears among them who can collect around him a congrega-
I tion, they will commence the erection of a house of worship of creditable
L dimensions and appearance.

On the road between Quincy and Peoria, I met with a slight adventure,
[ somewhat exciting at the time, and not a little calculated by its reaction on
my system, to prolong the weakness and enervated condition in which the
| fever had left me. I was obliged to take a stage at midnight, and was the only
passenger on board. After proceeding two or three miles from the little
[ village, we descended into a dark, dreary "bottom,” where the trees over-
[ shadowed the road and obscurred {sic} almost every ray of star-light. Here
f the driver told me he must stop, as the road was bad, and just beyond was
a difficult hill. Under such circumstances, I readily assented and he, winding
[ the lines of his four horses around his wrist, lay down upon the front seat
[ to sleep. For nearly half an hour I was quite contented, but as the cold damp
[ of the "bottom” began to affect me, I thought of the fever and ague, and
[ rather than endure a shake myself, I began to shake the driver and try to
I make him resume his place. But it was all in vain, I found that he was
[ stupidly intoxicated. Nothing remained for me now, but to sit quietly and
[risk a chill, or take the lines and turn driver myself. Having never driven
i a team of four horses in my life, and being in a dark miserable place on a
[ road of which I was unacquainted with every inch, and having hardly
[ strength enough to sit up straight, this was no easy undertaking; but seizing
i the lines, and assisting the driver to remove, I took his place, and drove on.

The moon soon rose above the tree-tops, and I succeeded in finding my
> way through bottoms and prairies and over the hills, right side up, till my
I companion inside awoke and relieved me of my charge. I expected when I
I commenced my tour, to obtain a great deal of information in this interesting
| country, but I never dreamed of learning the art of stage-driving. I confess
however, that it is an useful art, and quite an acquisition to any tourist,
I especially if it happens to be his lot to fall into the hands of a professional
. "Jehu” who often worship at the shrine of Bacchus. I advise every one who
| intends to travel, first to learn to drive a stage.

Yours respectfully, H. M. S.
New -York Recorder, Sept. 23, 1846.

Westward Expansion: A History of the American Frontier. By Ray Allen
Billington. (The Macmillan Company: New York, 1949. Pp. 873.9
$6.00.)

A good case could be made for the proposition that no single piece;
of historical writing has had such an influence on American historical investi-j .
gation as the late Frederick Jackson Turner’s The Significance of the Ameri- ■
can Frontier, first read before the American Historical Association in 1893-f fl
The essence of the Turnerian thesis is that "the frontier with its continuous]
influence is the most American thing in all America.”

But while he studied and taught this theme, Turner himself wrote®
relatively little about it. Certainly he did not produce the substantial works 1
in American history which might have been expected from one who lived] I
nearly forty years after he first announced his basic idea at the age of fl
thirty-two at the Columbian Exposition in Chicago.

Professor Billington of Northwestern University, already distinguishedj I
for his case history in a period of American prejudice, The Protestant Cru-m
sade, now issues a well-nigh exhaustive volume on the frontier as Turner fl
saw it and later research has interpreted it. In fact, he says that he attempts!
"to follow the pattern that Turner might have used had he ever com-] ;
pressed his voluminous researches on the American frontier into one
volume.”

Not only does Professor Billington present the Turner idea that Ameri- 1
can expansion has been "a series of conquests in which physiographic pro-;
vince after physiographic province was overrun by westward -moving]
pioneers” — the Northwestern historian follows specific suggestions which
Turner left. Thus the plan of the book is roughly the plan of Turner’s

472

BOOK REVIEWS

473

lectures at Harvard, where he taught after leaving his own University of
Wisconsin where he rose to stature and distinction.

Illinois cuts a wide swath in this history of the movement westward.
First references to Illinois naturally concern the early French explorers and
! agents, Henry de Tonty and others, including the missionaries who as early
as 1 699 selected a site for their chapel at the Indian village of Cahokia.
Thereafter Illinois comes in many times — its occupation by the British, site
of land speculation, capture by George Rogers Clark, its role in the
Revolution.

As population pours through the eastern mountains and the Mississippi
Valley actually begins to settle, the Illinois country gives way to the Illinois
Territory and the territory soon yields to the state. Then Professor Billington
tells of canal building, banking, railroads, the Mormons, the Lincoln-Douglas
debates, and other developments and events which are part of the Illinois
story.

Illinois’ role in agriculture comes to the fore in the period of the agrarian
revolt when prairie farmers turn to the Patrons of Husbandry as a medium
through which to express their discontent. In this connection the author tells
how Illinois farmers, leading the fight, take control of their legislature to pass,
in 1873, laws creating a commission with authority to set maximum rates on
both freight and passenger traffic. Out of this revolt came the famous Granger
I cases, including Munn vs. Illinois in which the Supreme Court in 1876 held
that grain elevators, railroads, gristmills, ferries, and other essential industries
were "clothed with a public interest which justified state regulation without
[ violation of the Fourteenth Amendment.”

While virtually the whole of Professor Billington’s encyclopedic work
\ lies before 1900, he does show how certain of the implications of the fron-
tier thesis come down to the New Freedom of Wilson and the New Deal
of Franklin D. Roosevelt. These progressive Presidents, says the author, "at-
; tempted to secure for individuals through positive governmental action the
[ social welfare and economic opportunity that was once provided by free
i land.”

Some measure of the research which went into this book can be told
I from the fact that the "bibliographical note” runs to seventy-five pages. This
j] lists several thousand books, pamphlets, articles, and monographs on the many
j phases of the frontier and western history. It would have been an achievement
* merely to appraise this array of historical material, to say nothing of digesting
it into a book which is good reading as well.

Collinsville.

IRVING DILLIARD.

474

BOOK REVIEWS

Lincoln’s Vandalia, A Pioneer Portrait. By William E. Baringer. ( Rutger? Ii
University Press: New Brunswick, N. J., 1949. Pp. 141. $2.50.)

Vandalia, the second capital of Illinois, provided Abraham Lincoln with;
his early understanding of constitutional government, whetted his appetite!';:
for public office, and encouraged him to adopt the profession of law as alii
means of furthering his ambition. The story is well told and documented by
Dr. William E. Baringer in Lincoln’s Vandalia, A Pioneer Portrait, recently fi
published under the sponsorship of the Abraham Lincoln Association of :
Springfield.

William H. Herndon, Nicolay and Hay, and most other biographers jj
of the Civil War President gave scant treatment to Lincoln’s career as a9
member of the lower house of the Illinois General Assembly in which hefl
took his seat in December, 1834, at the age of twenty -five. But Dr. Baringer.' jq
the former executive secretary of the Abraham Lincoln Association, made asl
searching and thorough study of the official records of the legislature andjl
supplemented this material with information found in private papers and in!j|
published works and contemporary newspapers.

As Dr. Baringer reminds the reader, Abraham Lincoln, of New Salem, i|
was an obscure young man a short time removed from a job as flatboatl
laborer when he became a lawmaker representing Sangamon County. How-f I
ever, he had the good fortune to be the protege of the talented John Todd; ji
Stuart, a college-trained lawyer and the leader of the Whig minority in thei j
House of Representatives.

Notwithstanding his handicaps, Lincoln boldly participated in the intro- ; l
duction of bills and even proposed a revision of the House rules when his I
service at Vandalia was only ten days old. He made mistakes from which he |
gained useful experience. He acquired skill as a parliamentary tactician and i
applied this talent to advance the interests of Sangamon County at every ji
opportunity. The Sangamo Journal at Springfield, published by Lincoln’s*1
friend, Simeon Francis, was informed on legislative subjects from time to I
time by an unidentified correspondent in Vandalia. A number of these contri-j i
butions were written in Lincoln’s style.

Lincoln’s popularity was shown at the 1836 election when he was re- i
turned to the legislature. He ranked high among seventeen candidates for the I
House. Whigs swept Sangamon County and were represented in the General j
Assembly by two senators and seven representatives, the largest delegation j
in that body. Lincoln was more than six feet, three inches tall, and the other j
members were above average height. The Sangamon delegation became I
known as the "Long Nine,” and by united action and studied logrolling on
the internal improvement act gained the removal of the same capital
to Springfield.

BOOK REVIEWS

475

The New Salem Representative, with increased confidence in his ability,
willingly met veterans of the opposition party in debate. He was the most
active of the "Long Nine” in rounding up votes for the capital relocation bill.
He was among six House members who opposed the adoption of an anti-
abolition resolution which was passed with an overwhelming majority, and
although he planned a mild protest against the institution of slavery, he
shrewdly waited until the internal improvement and the capital relocation
I bills were in the bag. On the last day of the session, Lincoln and Dan Stone,
another Sangamon Whig, spread on the House journal a protest to the posi-
. tion taken by the legislature on abolitionism. In this statement Lincoln and
Stone declared their belief that slavery was "founded on both injustice and
bad policy” but modified the declaration by condemning the activities of
, some abolitionists.

When the Eleventh General Assembly — the last to meet at Vandalia —
was convened in December, 1838, Abraham Lincoln had grown to such
, political stature that he was the Whig choice for Speaker of the House. He
lost to the Democratic candidate, William L. D. Ewing, by a narrow margin.

Dr. Baringer gives generous credit to Dr. Harry E. Pratt, his predecessor
as executive secretary of the Abraham Lincoln Association, who did much
of the original research necessary to produce Lincoln’s Vandalia.

Peoria. ERNEST E. EAST.

[The University of Wisconsin: A History, 1848-1923 (Volume Two). By
Merle Curti and Vernon Carstensen. (University of Wisconsin
Press: Madison, 1949. Pp. x, 668. $6.00. The second of two volumes.
Both volumes, $10.)

This reviewer finds himself fully satisfied with the quality of this second
? volume of the history of the University of Wisconsin, which has maintained
i the high standard of the first, reviewed in the June, 1949, issue of this
t Journal (pp. 229-230). The authors have devoted the entire second volume
jto the administrations of presidents Charles R. Van Hise (1903-1918) and
Edward A. Birge (1918-1925). Thus they have avoided the dangers of deal-
j ing with men and events more nearly contemporary.

Under Van Hise the University gave fullest expression to the 'Wisconsin
J Idea” of public service. This is illustrated by the fact that by 1908 forty-one
1 members of the faculty were serving the state of Wisconsin on one or more
ij boards or commissions (p. 88). From 1905 to 1940 over 150 members
■ served the state as well as the university (p. 551).

The university idea of academic freedom was successfully sustained by
u both presidents, despite attacks upon it from influential sources. This was

476

BOOK REVIEWS

exemplified by the case of Professor Edward A. Ross, the sociologist, in 1910 1
(pp. 63-67) and by the fact that only one teacher, a German national,!
was forced out during World War I, and he for flagrant abuse of freedom of ‘
speech (p. 114). Other German citizens on the faculty were not disturbed, li

Van Hise’s greatness, the authors conclude, "had been less in the in-
vention of new ideas and policies than in his work for their implementation.” a
Van Hise "had fought well; he had temporized with circumspection; he had i j
clearly shown academic statesmanship and greatness of spirit and action. ! ,|
He had made his mistakes, but the mistakes only served to emphasize his !■ ; I
achievements” (p. 122).

Edward A. Birge, dean of the College of Letters and Science from \
1891 to 1918, succeeded Van Hise. Birge had less warmth of personality than i jj
his predecessor, and his leadership was less colorful. "His formula for success |1
was honest hard work.” He was "out of sympathy although not out of touch I
with the educational changes which began sweeping the country after the i j
first World War,” and he was "unwilling to sponsor changes in either the j )\
organization or direction of the University during his term of office.” He
was, nevertheless, "completely devoted to the University he had served so ? I
long in so many capacities” (p. 139).

The authors have chronicled those events in the development of the
University of Wisconsin which contributed to its role in our national educa- j
tional advance. Important was the long controversy with State Superintendent j
of Education Charles P. Carey (1903-1921) over the question of university j
inspection and accreditment of public high schools (pp. 240-251).

The role of the university in teacher training and the consequent friction ;
with the state normal schools is described in detail (pp. 251-266). The *
authors suggest that:

It was at least an open question whether the "highest educational in- f|
terests” of the state were served by opposing the development of the teachers (
colleges into the regional colleges which appear to be evolving at the present, !,
or whether these interests might not have been better served if, instead of j
fighting the advance of the normal schools, University officials had encouraged |!
their growth, generously and wisely, and helped them toward educational |
respectability and usefulness, (p. 266)

More than half of the book is devoted to accounts of the various fields [.
of university activity. The treatment of graduate work is brought together
in brief compass (pp. 367-373). The short discussion of the personalities and
work of the History Department (pp. 334-338) will be of particular interest
to readers of the Journal, Turner, Munro, Westermann, Fish, Paxson — all :
are names to conjure with!

BOOK REVIEWS

All

Perhaps of greatest popular interest is the extended description of the
work of the College of Agriculture (chapter eleven), including the story
of the Babcock butterfat test for milk and its practical implications (pp.
I 387-390) and also the account of the developments in the field of vitamin
I research (pp. 412-415).

These two volumes have told well a story well worth telling. The
• University of Wisconsin in many respects is our greatest state university,
j As the authors point out in a postscript, its greatness has stemmed from
I four elements: "Good men, sufficient funds, freedom in research and teaching
| and able leadership have been basic in the emergence of Wisconsin as a lead-
> ing state university.” Professors Curti and Carstensen are to be congratulated
| for having written a book that is scholarly and complete, and eminently read-
able, even to one with no personal associations with the University of
Wisconsin.

Eastern Illinois State College. CHARLES H. COLEMAN.

[ Southern Illinois: Resources and Potentials of the Sixteen Southernmost
Counties. By the Executive Committee on Southern Illinois. (The
University of Illinois Press in Urbana, 1949. Pp. 193. Clothbound
$3.00 paper-bound $2.00.)

Sponsored by five agencies consisting of the Illinois state geological, water,
[ and natural history surveys, the University of Illinois and Southern Illinois
i University, this is a regional study of the sixteen southernmost counties of
[ the state. The project was started by the creation of an executive committee
on southern Illinois organized at the request of various southern Illinois
[ groups to aid them in a study of their economic and social problems. The diffi-
culties of such a study were so numerous and varied that the assistance of the
participating agencies was enlisted.

The book consists of sixteen chapters organized under three divisions
[ or sections. Under "Place and People” are five chapters dealing with physical
I geography, history and culture, governmental organization and taxation,
j population trends and labor supply. The six chapters listed under "Land
Minerals and Water” deal with agriculture, forest, mineral, and water re-
sources, industries, wildlife, and recreation. The third section entitled
"Business and Industry” contains chapters on transportation, power supply,
financial resources, industrial pattern, and retail, wholesale, and service trades.
Written by twenty-eight authors, the chapters are well balanced, objective,
and cover the various topics thoroughly.

The study indicates an unbalanced economy in southern Illinois with
a lack of industry causing unemployment at times, although the assets of the

478

BOOK REVIEWS

area as set forth in the study greatly outweigh its liabilities. While the report!
is not intended as a plan of action certain recommendations are made forj
communities and counties, such as soil improvement, more effective land I
utilization, greater emphasis on recreational development, fruit and livestock j i j
raising, and a greater development of industry. These changes of emphasis . i
will produce a better balanced economy leading to more employment oppor-B
tunities at higher levels of income. The volume is well bound and printed, ! I
with numerous graphs, maps, statistical tables and attractive illustrations.! i
There is no index.

Southern Illinois University. Harold E. briggs. i ; J

The Vincennes Donation Lands. By Leonard Lux. (Indiana Historical Society, ? d
Publications , Vol. 15, no. 4. Indianapolis, 1949. Pp. 423-497. $1.00.) ' *

To the list of reasons ordinarily enumerated for the development of thejl
United States land policy, should be added one more: compensation to a'jij
group of pioneers (mostly French) to assist them in establishing a stable > ii
agricultural economy since their aid to the Revolutionary cause had brought ! A
them only hardships and suffering. Such was the origin of the Vincennes
Donation Lands.

In 1788, in response to these people’s appeal, the Confederation Con-jl
gress granted four hundred acres of land to each head of a family who had i a
settled at Vincennes on or before 1783, and in addition confirmed their titles i
to land granted under previous regimes. Later, more grants were made to !
American militiamen and for the Vincennes Common. As a result of many|J
historical, legal, and local conditions, it was nearly thirty years before final j fl
settlements were made, titles confirmed, and patents issued. In the meantime, | fl
most of the original beneficiaries had sold their titles or their hopes to new |
settlers and speculators, so that the original purposes were not accomplished, t !
The beneficiaries did, however, receive momentary relief, but the principal
result of the donations was the stimulus they gave to the movement of j
settlers, and the passing of control to the American population.

Mr. Lux has uncovered the details of this story from the sources — prin- j
cipally the land office records, the American State Papers (Public Lands) , and !
the Territorial papers. He has reconstructed one of those stories that illumi- j
nate the complex and variegated manner in which historical events work j j
out. And he has written, not so much a history of lands, laws, and titles, but
of the people who lived on the land, and whose lives were so fundamentally j
affected by the events recorded in the narrative.

Penn College , Cleveland, Ohio.

BERNARD MANDEL.

BOOK REVIEWS

479

Guide to the Swarthmore College Peace Collection: A Memorial to Jane
Addams. Compiled by Ellen Starr Brenton and Hiram Doty with the
assistance of Gladys Hill. (Swarthmore College Bulletin. Peace
Collection Publication No. 1.)

Great Britain threatened to enter the Civil War on the side of the South
in 1861 when federal officers removed two Confederate envoys from a
British vessel. During the critical exchanges of diplomatic protests the London
Times noted: "The Society of Friends have come forward with their accus-
tomed gravity to urge the old remedy of an arbitration.” Quakers during those
critical days were one of the few groups who could make the Times or any
other newspaper in Britain listen. They were, perhaps, the only preachers of
peace who dared express their views openly without being hooted out of
hearing. The Society of Friends have consistently maintained this principle
throughout other wars.

This Guide is a detailed calendar of documents in the Quaker College
; at Swarthmore. The so-called Peace Collection contains books, pamphlets,
1 clippings, typescripts, and organizational minutes of peace societies in the
i United States as well as in various foreign countries. Special collections
within the Collection contain peace plays, peace posters, cartoons and material
on anti-peace organizations, as well as general attacks on the peace move-
L ment. The files of several anti-war serials published especially for young
\ people are also cataloged in the Guide. J. M.

■ Abraham Lincoln and the United States. By K. C. Wheare. (The Macmillan
Company: New York, 1949. Pp. 286. $2.00.)

What is the best one-volume biography of Abraham Lincoln? Since
S 1916 the reply has been "Lord Charnwood’s” and it has seemed strange that
i such distinction should fall on a non- American, but we should not forget that
[' many Europeans were writing about Lincoln during the first decade after his
[ death when Lincoln seemed almost forgotten in his own country.

Critics of Charnwood’s book have pointed out that recent research has
I revised many of the author’s statements. Reviewers have also complained that
I Charnwood wrote more about the United States’ form of government than
I was necessary for American readers. K. C. Wheare’s is open to the same
1 criticism, for his book, too, is aimed at a British audience. In short it is a
I Charnwood brought up to date, and this is about as high a compliment as
lean be paid a one-volume life of Lincoln. Moreover the price of $2.00 in this
{age of inflated book prices is certainly attractive. J. M.

480

BOOK REVIEWS

Letters from Lighting Hoosiers. Selected and edited by Howard H. Peckham
and Shirley A. Snyder. (Indiana War History Commission: Bloom
ington, 1948. Pp. 406: $5.00.)

Letters from Fighting Hoosiers , 131 letters chosen from a collection of;
3,500, is "an attempt to convey how the war looked and sounded; how it
smelled and felt to a representative number of Hoosiers.” This promise of
the editors is abundantly fulfilled. The selection includes letters from men
in all branches of the service and all theaters of the war, and covers the
years from Pearl Harbor to V-J Day and after.

Here is the story of Bataan written by an artilleryman from his jungle
foxhole; here are firsthand accounts of Okinawa, I wo Jima, the beachheads
of Salerno and Normandy, the Battle of the Bulge, the surrender in Berlin,
and visits to the concentration camps of Germany. Here, also, are the monot-
ony and boredom of war; the waiting in line for "chow,” for pills and shots
("hurry up and wait” became a favorite Army saying); the griping over!
regimental red tape, crowded transports, dehydrated food, the "stupidity”
of the brass.

Here are the extremes, the contradictions of war: sudden removal from
a slit trench to a luxuriously furnished apartment in a captured city, or a rest,1
period on the French Riviera ("a million dollar vacation on a GI salary”),?
the mechanization of fighting and war’s essential primitiveness — sleeping
in rain and mud without benefit of baths or fresh clothes, cold food and*
weary marches days and nights on end; or the noise, then the silences. A
soldier on Bataan under fire from Japanese bombs complained that the
roosters kept him awake. Men nerve-wracked by the scream of shells and
explosion of bombs found the silence of deserted villages oppressive. ("The
town was deserted and silent. Not the silence you know, but a more profound
and depressing silence. It was so quiet it was deafening. There was not a living;
thing in sight, only ruins.”)

Brief biographical sketches give the home towns of these writers, their
war records, their postwar occupations, if they survived (many lost their
lives in combat). Among the writers are grocers, electricians, welders, strip
miners, sheet metal workers, farmers, carpenters, mail carriers, telephone
linemen, printers, insurance agents, with a sprinkling of teachers, physicians,
ministers. Although a few write like news reporters or journalists, the over-
whelming majority were not writers by profession.

But under the stimulus of danger and the imminence of death soldiers
unschooled in the literary art achieved miracles of perception and penetra-
tion. For example, a sergeant in the infantry, now an Indiana farmer, described
his meditations upon the flight of American bombers over a battlefield in

BOOK REVIEWS

481

France in prose that would be hard to match. It is one of many such passages
of literary excellence as well as historical value to be found in these battle
reports of enlisted men:

And then a new sound gradually droned into our ears. It was deep and
all encompassing, without notes — just a gigantic faraway surge of doom. It
was the heavies. They came from directly behind us, and at first they were
the merest dots in the sky. You could see clots of them against the far
heavens, too tiny to count individually. They came on with terrible slow-
ness. . . . I’ve never known a storm or a machine or any resolve of man
that had about it the aura of such ghastly relentlessness. You had the feel-
ing that even had God appeared beseechingly before them in the sky with
palms outward to persuade them back they would not have had within them
the power to turn from their irresistible course.

Letters from Lighting Hoosiers is the second volume (the first to ap-
pear) in a projected ten-volume history, Indiana in World War II, to be
published by the Indiana War History Commission. Dr. Lynn W. Turner,
professor of history at Indiana University, is director of the commission.

Illinois State Historical Library. MARY WATTERS.

Guns on the Western Waters. The Story of River Gunboats in the Civil War.

By H. Allen Gosnell. (Louisiana State University Press: Baton
Rouge, 1949. Pp. xii, 273. $6.50.)

The Civil War period offers a seemingly inexhaustible and fertile field
. for the historical writer. This book deals with the war on the western waters
: and is well illustrated with drawings and photographs of river gunboats and
[ their commanders.

To a considerable extent the author lets contemporaries, eye-witnesses,
i tell the stories of the thrilling engagements of these odd-appearing armored
[ craft. He states in his introduction that he has deliberately avoided the
| scholarly approach. The book is entertaining, exciting, and now and then
l amusing as these contemporary writers saw the humor of a situation after
l it had passed. One such, in the chapter, "Blood and Sand and Steam,” is
| told by Eliot Callender, then a seaman aboard the Cincinnati. Generals Grant,
McClernand, and C. F. Smith were in conference with Admiral Foote aboard
l the Cincinnati. As they were leaving they noticed a torpedo which had been
I pulled up out of the water. But let Seaman Callender tell the story:

They gathered about it with expressions of interest and curiosity, as it
\ was the first seen in the war. . . . General Grant, having expressed a wish
j to see the mechanism of the affair, the ship’s armorer was sent for, who
[ soon appeared with monkey-wrench, hammer, and chisels. The iron end
was soon loosened and removed, disclosing another ending in a cap with a

482

BOOK REVIEWS

screw head. The thing was now getting interesting, and the assembled l
officers bent closely over it to get a better view of the infernal contrivance. S .
As this cap was unscrewed, it allowed vent to a quantity of gas inside, prob- *
ably generated from the wet powder, which rushed out with a loud sizzing ;
noise. Believing that the hour for evening prayer had arrived, two of the
army officers threw themselves face downward upon the deck. Admiral ; j
Foote, with the agility of a cat, sprang up the ship’s ladder, followed with : <
commendable enthusiasm by General Grant. Reaching the top, and realizing
that the danger, if any, had passed, the Admiral turned around to General | fl
Grant, who was displaying more energy than grace in his first efforts on a ;■
ship’s ladder, and said, with his quiet smile, "General, why this haste?” "That « \i
the navy may not get ahead of us,” as quietly responded the General as he i
turned around to come down.

This book would be helped if it had an index and a bibliography but a
it is intended primarily to be read and enjoyed. It should appeal especially j
to all who love to read about naval encounters. The author is a former ;1
lieutenant commander in the U. S. Navy. S. A. W.

Indiana Authors and Their Books, 1816-1916. Compiled by R. E. Banta. (Pub- J
lished as a contribution to institutional libraries by Wabash College: ; ]
Crawfordsville, Ind., 1949. Pp. xvii, 352.)

This is truly an amazing book, and we suspect that its magnitude sur- j
prised even the compiler. He says that "the compilation of this work has been ; ;
a long task but a pleasant one.” His brief introduction or foreword, "A
Word About Indiana Authors,” is a delightful resume of the literary efforts ;
of this influential Midwestern state. Indiana’s ability to produce authors who j
write best sellers is something to ponder. Surpassed, in this respect, only by j
New York state, and "a fighting second at that,” Indiana occupies an unusual ij
position in the American literary scene.

An attractive book and an interesting one to read, it is filled with !
hundreds (we did not count them) of biographical sketches of the impor-
tant, the less important, and the wholly insignificant writers whom Indiana ;
claims. The distinguished names are amazing: Ade, Dreiser, Tarkington, !
Riley, Eggleston, George Barr McCutcheon, Albert J. Beveridge, William i
Vaughn Moody, Meredith Nicholson, Mary Hartwell Catherwood, and Will
Cuppy, to name only a very few of the more familiar ones that troop through |
these pages. No doubt other states would claim many of the authors, too, 1
but if they were born in Indiana and had published anything from 1816 to
1916, they belong to Indiana. Were it not for the arbitrary dates, the list
would doubtless be much greater — Lloyd Lewis and Ernie Pyle, at least, would
have been included.

The basis for inclusion, in addition to having published prior to 1916, is: :
"writers . . . who (a) were born in Indiana, (b) were reared and educated

BOOK REVIEWS

483

in Indiana, (c) whose literary work began during residence in Indiana and
was obviously influenced by Indiana residence, or (d) who chose Indiana
as a place in which to spend a major portion of their lives.” Once an author
has been listed, the bibliography of his writings is brought down to date.

S. A. W.

The Hall Carbine Affair : A Study in Contemporary Folklore. By R. Gordon
Wasson. (Pandick Press, Inc.: New York, 1948. Pp. 190. $4.00.)

This is a revised edition of a book first published in 1941. Briefly, it
concerns some 5,000 Hall carbines that were bought from the government
soon after the Civil War began at $3.50 each and then sold back to a Union
general (John C. Fremont) for $22 apiece.

The guns changed hands several times before getting back to the govern-
ment and in one of these transactions J. Pierpont Morgan made a loan of
$20,000 on them. Because of this various writers have said or implied that
the Morgan fortune was founded on Civil War profiteering. Wasson sets out
to "prove that the alleged transaction, insofar as the case against Morgan
is concerned, is legend, not fact.” This he does pretty effectively by going
to the original sources — most of which are government records that were
neglected by other authors. However, if he had stated that his purpose was
to correct an error which had crept into history he would have accomplished
the same end without leaving the suspicion that his motives were not much
higher than those of the writers he chastises.

By giving the full details of one series of transactions in Civil War sup-
plies Wasson reminds his readers that the scramble for a quick dollar was
just as hectic then as it was more recently in World War II. And also his
work suggests that he or other authors might perform a worthwhile service
by using his approach to the story of the latter conflict. H. F. R.

Uncle Willie Presents. ... By Willard S. Richey. (Journal Publishing Com-
pany, Tuscola, Illinois, 1949- Pp. 26.)

The only complaint a reader could have about this little collection of
reprints from the columns of the Tuscola Journal is that there aren’t enough
of them. Although the title page says that "Bachelor Bill” is writing "on the
life and times of early days in Douglas County” most of what he says could
be applied to pioneering anywhere in Illinois. And he knows what he is writ-
ing about. When he tells how wooden door latches were made, for instance,
he goes through the process step by step so that when he is finished the
reader could make a latch himself. The same is true of kraut and other pioneer
products. But there should be more of them. H, F. R.

484

BOOK REVIEWS

A YEAR’S MAGAZINE ARTICLES OF INTEREST TO ILLINOISANS

"The Fred Harvey System.” By Charles W. Hurd. (The Colorado Maga-
zine, July, 1949.)

"Paulding Satirizes Owenism.” By Mentor Williams. ( Indiana Magazine
of History, Dec., 1948.)

"An Owenite Society in Illinois.” By Walter B. Hendrickson. ( Indiana
Magazine of History, June, 1949.) I ft

"Buffalo to Chicago in 1839.” By Fred Landon. ( Inland Seas, Fall, 1948.) i
"The 'President Maker’ Goes West.” By Mentor L. Williams. ( Inland ji ^
Seas, Winter, 1948.) An account of Thurlow Weed’s trip on the Great Lakes I ^
to the Chicago Harbor and River Convention.

"Communism in Early Iowa.” By Ava Johnson. ( Annals of Iowa, July, j

1949.)

"The Mississippi River Through Many Eyes.” By William J. Peterson. ^
( The Iowa Journal of History and Politics, Oct., 1948.)

"Jefferson Davis and the Rock Island Bridge.” By Dwight L. Agnew.

( Iowa Journal of History, Jan., 1949.)

"The Civil War Diary of Colonel John Henry Smith.” Edited by David
M. Smith. (Iowa Journal of History, April, 1949.)

"Over the Santa Fe Trail Through Kansas in 1858.” By H. B. Moll-
hausen; translated by John A. Burzle. (The Kansas Historical Quarterly, Nov.,
1948.)

"From New York to Illinois by Water in 1840.” By Edward Brewster.
(Michigan History, Sept., 1948.)

"Down to Our State in Ships.” By Edward J. Dowling, S. J. (Michigan
History, March, 1949.) A brief story of shipping on the Great Lakes.

"Cantonment Wilkinsonville.” By Norman W. Caldwell. (Mid- America,
Jan, 1949.)

"Internal Improvements in Illinois Politics, 1837-1842.” By John H.
Krenkel. (Mid-America, April, 1949.)

"James Stuart’s Journey up the River Mississippi in 1830.” By W. H. G.
Armytage. (Mid- America, April, 1949.)

"The Early Theatre in the Upper Mississippi Valley.” By Harold and
Ernestine Briggs. (Mid- America, July, 1949.)

"Passenger Trains of Yesteryear on the Minneapolis & St. Louis.” By
Frank P. Donovan. (Minnesota History, Sept, 1949.)

BOOK REVIEWS 485

"Toward a Western Literature.” By David Donald and Frederick A.
Palmer. ( Mississippi Valley Historical Review, Dec., 1948.)

"The Pony Express Starts From St. Joseph.” By Olaf T. Hagen. (Mis-
i souri Historical Review, Oct., 1948.)

"Handcarts on the Overland Trail.” By Jay Monaghan. ( Nebraska
History, March, 1949.)

"Seed Humbuggery Among Western Farmers, 1850-1888.” By Earl W.
Hayter. ( The Ohio State Archaeological and Historical Quarterly, Jan. 1949.)

"Lincoln and Iowa.” By William J. Petersen. {The Palimpsest, Aug.,
1949.) The June, 1949, issue of The Palimpsest is devoted to "Iowa Dime
I Novels,” a subject that may interest many an old-timer.

"The Original Typewriter Enterprise, 1867-1873.” By Richard N. Cur-
! rent. ( Wisconsin Magazine of History, June, 1949.)

The copies of Chicago History, published quarterly by the Chicago
I Historical Society, have a peculiar charm. Like the enjoyment of good food,
■ they must be sampled to be appreciated.

The latest issue of the Egyptian Key to come to our attention (Vol. 3,
j no. 2, June, 1949) contains as usual many interesting articles. Those who have
l visited Cairo will want to read the one on "Fort Defiance” by Guyla Wallis
; Moreland and see the illustrations.

THE GOLDEN ANNIVERSARY MEETING

Governor Adlai E. Stevenson, Carl Sandburg, Allan Nevins, Frazier
Hunt, Fern Nance Pond, and Everett M. Dirksen composed the largest group
of distinguished speakers ever assembled for a program of the Illinois State [i
Historical Society and they attracted by far the largest attendance in the
Society’s first half-century to the Golden Anniversary celebration in Spring-
field on October 7 and 8. Although the sessions lasted for two full days there i
was no flagging of interest on the part of the members. They even found time i
for a business meeting at which the constitution was amended so that directors jl
may not be re-elected until a year after their terms expire. And then the ij
Society chose the following directors for the three-year term:

Elmer E. Abrahamson, attorney, Chicago;

David V. Felts, newspaperman, Decatur;

Ralph Hinchliff, industrialist, Rockford;

Philip L. Keister, attorney, Freeport;

Clarence P. McClelland, president of MacMurray College, ;j
Jacksonville.

The directors met later and named the following officers for 1949-1950: I
President, Scerial Thompson, Harrisburg; senior vice-president, O. F. Ander,
Rock Island; vice-presidents, George C. Dixon, Dixon; Vernon L. Nickell,
Springfield; C. C. Tisler, Ottawa; H. Gary Hudson, Jacksonville; Oscar Hay- ;
ward, Winnetka; and Mrs. Harry L. Meyer, Alton.

Mayor Harry A. Eielson extended Springfield’s welcome to the
Society at the opening luncheon on Friday, at the Abraham Lincoln Hotel,
which was addressed by Governor Stevenson and Frazier Hunt, author and
foreign correspondent. The Governor, a long-time member of the Society,

486

NEWS AND COMMENT

487

urged local groups to continue their work in preserving historic landmarks
and said that the state will acquire and maintain as many of the important
ones as finances will permit.

The business session followed this luncheon and lasted until after the tea
at the Executive Mansion was scheduled to begin. Guests were received at
the tea by the wives of former presidents of the Historical Society.

The Sponsors’ Dinner on Friday was held at the Leland Hotel, where
Historian Allan Nevins delivered the address of the evening. His talk was
titled "Stephen A. Douglas: His Weaknesses and His Greatness.” (See page
385 of this issue.) The Nevins paper was preceded by a recital of folk
songs by R. E. Patton, of Springfield, accompanied by Mrs. Patton on the
piano and A. J. Cope on the banjo.

Saturday’s schedule was nearly as full as Friday’s. Four busses and about
fifty private cars made the twenty-three-mile trip to New Salem State Park
where Fern Nance Pond, of Petersburg, told the story of the research and work
necessary to make the village as it was when Lincoln lived there as a young
man. The large group then strolled through the park with Mrs. Pond as their
guide and assembled at the museum entrance where benches had been
arranged on the grass and a loud-speaker system set up for the Sandburg
talk. Fred Schrader, of Springfield, introduced the poet and Lincoln biog-
rapher, who kept his audience spellbound for more than half an hour with
his extemporaneous stories and songs that were sung when New Salem was
young. During his talk he read a recently discovered speech attributed to
Lincoln, which he called the best interpretation of the Declaration of Inde-
pendence he had ever seen. ( It is published in Sandburg’s latest book, Lincoln
Collector, and in Collier’s magazine for October 15, 1949.) A wire recording
of the Sandburg address was made by Fred Schrader, who later had it tran-
scribed. A limited number of mimeographed copies have been made and are
available to those who desire them; however, the talk will be published later
in this Journal.

Following this program the members ate luncheon at the W^agon Wheel
Inn at New Salem Park, then returned to Springfield where the Golden Anni-
versary Banquet was held Saturday night at the Abraham Lincoln Hotel.
Speaker of the evening at this final event was former Congressman Everett
M. Dirksen, of Pekin. He drew a comparison between the headlines and
problems of 1899, date of the founding of the Historical Society, and 1949.
His listeners were surprised to find how little the world seemed to have
changed. The hors d’oeuvres of the evening’s entertainment was a presenta-
tion of the Lincoln-Douglas debate scene from Robert E. Sherwood’s play,
Abe Lincoln in Illinois, with G. William Horsley as Lincoln and S. Phil
Hutchison as Douglas.

Edgar F. Schulz photo

Fern Nance Pond Tells New Salem Story

At the beginning of the Historical Society’s visit to the Park.

Elmer E. Abrahamson photo

Sandburg's Audience Sits Spellbound

On the grass in the warm October sun.

488

Photos by Edgar F. Schulz

Younger Visitors Find Program Engrossing

History proves its popularity outside the classroom.

What a Day for a Stroll in the Park!

New Salem’s "street” was never so crowded in Lincoln’s time.

490

NEWS AND COMMENT

Thus the program progressed according to the schedule arranged by j
Chairman Wayne C. Townley and his committee. The weatherman co- j
operated wholeheartedly when he could have discouraged attendance at some
of the events, particularly the one at New Salem. An estimated 300 persons
attended the meetings, and while not all of them were at all of the sessions
the number at the Friday luncheon and dinner taxed the accommodations
provided at their respective hotels, and the Wagon Wheel Inn was able to !
serve only 125 guests at each of two sittings, which meant that some were
disappointed by not being able to lunch with the rest of the group.

Amoiig the guests at the opening luncheon were J. J. Viala, consul
general of France, and D. A. H. Wright, acting consul general of Great
Britain ( both of Chicago ) , representatives of the two foreign countries which
had once held possession of what is now Illinois. Although they had originally
planned to stay for only the one luncheon, both remained for the two full
days.

Throughout the programs the tables were decorated with fall flowers, j
The local arrangements committees are indebted to S. A. Barker for a
floral piece used at the speakers’ table and to Peter F. Rossiter for the flowers
at the registration desk.

ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY

October 7, 1949

To the Directors and Members
of the Illinois State Historical Society

LADIES AND GENTLEMEN:

A year ago I reported that our campaign for new members had netted
us 485 as compared to 268 the previous year. This increase in 1948 amounted
to almost 25 per cent. I am happy to tell you that our increase this year
amounts to 1,810, a gain of 32.4 per cent over the 1948 total. Two years ago
we set 2,000 members as the goal for our Fiftieth Anniversary. Last year
we were well over this figure and we set a new one: we hoped to get
5,000 — not 2,000 — by the time of our anniversary meeting. You will be
interested to know that our total membership mailing list on October 1 was
6,380. This makes us, I believe, one of the largest historical societies in the
world.

A year ago we had members in all but eleven counties of the state.
Today we have members in every one of the 102 counties in Illinois. This
great increase has been due, we hope, to the superiority of our publications,

NEWS AND COMMENT

491

j but it has also been due to the energy and loyalty of members of the Society
; and to certain staff members of the Historical Library. Mr. Dayton W.Canaday,
in addition to his other duties as book scout for the Library, has publicized
| the services our Society offers and he has gained for us hundreds of members,
f Another staff member, Mrs. Francis Whitney, has diligently written some
: 2,450 letters to prospective members. Jewell Stevens has acted as chairman
of the Society’s membership committee to organize volunteers. He divided
[ the state into four zones, as follows: (1) DuPage and Cook counties with
Elmer Abrahamson as chairman; ( 2 ) the Northern Zone under the direction
of Wayne C. Townley; (3) the Central Zone under the chairmanship of
Mrs. Harry L. Meyer; (4) the Southern Illinois Zone presided over by Scerial
Thompson. To all these volunteers our members should be grateful for their
efforts to increase membership. At the head of them all we must salute Mrs.
Harry L. Meyer for recruiting 1,300 Junior members in the Alton public
schools. Special recognition should also be given Philip Keister of Freeport,
Michael Kross and H. A. Berens of DuPage County, and Willis Reddick and
Louis Hey of Sangamon County. Many other members, too numerous to
mention, have helped us attain our present enrollment. We have published
their names with thanks every six months in the Society’s Journal. The fol-
lowing have achieved the distinction of being cited in both of the last two
six-month lists:

The Abraham Lincoln Book Shop

Elmer E. Abrahamson

Mrs. W. K. Chapman

Mrs. R. S. Cooke

Irving Dilliard

Mollie Duffy

David V. Felts

Meda Hill Fisher

Mrs. Cora Jacobs

Mrs. C. E. Knapp

Paul O. Lewis

Everette B. Long
Mrs. Harry L. Meyer
J. G. Randall
Mrs. Addie R. Ranson
Mrs. Frank C. Reilly
Mabel E. Richmond
Dr. R. C. Slater
Hermon Dunlap Smith
Jewell E. Stevens
Mrs. Francis A. Whitney

It may be of interest to note the areas where the percentage of increase
has been the largest. The northern part of the state gained 49 per cent.
Central Illinois gained 45 per cent, Southern Illinois 42 per cent and DuPage
and Cook counties 37 per cent. During this same period our Junior Historian
membership gained 44 per cent — the greatest advance the Society has ever
known.

This gain in membership with the concurrent payment of dues has put
us in splendid financial condition. The Society s funds on September 29

492 NEWS AND COMMENT

totaled $17,82486. (The complete financial statement is printed separately. ) If
This large capital is due to an accrual of money paid in dues plus $3, 5 80.50 j
raised by the Fiftieth Anniversary Fund committee under the direction of h
Oscar Hayward.

Now that we have assembled here to observe our Fiftieth Anniversary]

I am sure that all of you will enjoy the papers prepared for us. We are par-j
ticularly fortunate in having a program chairman, Wayne C. Townley, who ■
has arranged for lectures by Frazier Hunt, Allan Nevins, Fern Nance Pond,!
Carl Sandburg, and Everett M. Dirksen.

Completion of the Society’s extensive publication program for this j }
anniversary can be announced at this time. The two books, The Story oft*.
Illinois by Theodore Calvin Pease, and This Is Illinois, a pictorial history )»
compiled by your secretary, are both on sale now commercially. They may!®
be ordered through local book stores or by writing direct to the University of i t
Chicago Press. All members of the Illinois State Historical Society may ; ;
purchase these volumes at reduced prices. The other publishing project for I
the anniversary — the gigantic index to the first twenty-five volumes of our jl
Society’s Journal — nears completion. This task has taken over five years. Ifl
The printing is being done by the state. All proofs have been read and we
wait only for the binders to finish the job.

Our activities outside the publishing field have been more numerous j
this year than usual. On May 20-21, the Society visited the sites of the early
French settlements a Cahokia, Prairie du Rocher, and Kaskaskia. This ( I
spring tour was described at length in the June issue of our Journal. The ;
success of the meeting was due largely to the energy and executive aptness t1!
of Irving Dilliard, Mrs. William H. Matlack, and Miss Rose Boy lan. At Fort ];
de Chartres a delicious luncheon was served us by Mr. Thomas Conner and >
members of St. Joseph’s Church at Prairie du Rocher.

The Society’s experiment with the publication of the Junior Historian I
magazine has progressed past the trial stage. We are now entering the third 1:
year of this activity. The work started by Directors O. Fritiof Ander and John j
H. Hauberg has spread from Rock Island to Will and Edwards counties. Mr. !'
John Burhorn has been employed as full-time director for this project, and |
all of us look forward to a most successful expansion. This publishing venture, I;
as you know, is partially self-supporting. Mr. Burhorn is employed by the j
Historical Library, and the dues from junior subscriptions defray the costs of
printing. The first year of operation ended with a modest surplus of $261.96.
Last year our books showed a balance of $464.84. As our venture is a non- !
profit one for the benefit of Illinois school children, and as our increased
enrollment promises an even larger surplus we are able to cut the price from

NEWS AND COMMENT

493

$1.00 to $.75 for club subscriptions, and the size of the format will be in-
creased as our finances permit. A vote of thanks is due the Council for the
Social Studies for its interest in this project and the energy and enthusiasm
with which it has worked to spread the junior historian movement in Illinois
schools.

The recognition our organization has received in the press is gratifying.
Our clipping service discloses 640 news items concerning Society activities.
This number may be compared with 520 citations last year and 150 in 1947.
As always, the Journal’s editor can learn much from the comments about
our publications in other periodicals. Articles in the Journal receiving the
most favorable reviews during the last year were Clarence Paine’s "Wild Bill
Hickok,” Lloyd Lewis’s "Lincoln and Pinkerton,” Paolo Coletta’s "Silas Bryan
of Salem,” Carl Roden’s "The Beaubien Claim,” and the Mexican War
journal edited by Alfred J. Henderson.

During 1949 the Society renewed its old policy of placing historical
markers on Illinois highways. Your directors decided on a program of erect-
ing three such markers per year. The three selected for 1949 have been the
Lewis and Clark camp site on Wood River, the old Alton Penitentiary, and
the Palestine Land Office.

The register of deaths of members of the Society since our last meeting
seems unusually large:

Dr. Oliver A. Meyer, Alton
Henry C. Morris, Chicago
Nell B. Waldron, Normal
Mrs. Albyn Adams, Jacksonville
Albert H. Griffith, Oshkosh, Wis.
Miss Mabel E. Williams, Decatur
Mrs. M. G. M. Jones, Jacksonville
Stanley K. Faye, Aurora
W. W. Tracy, Springfield
O. W. Jones, Murphysboro
John Nuveen, Chicago
Nettie S. Lindsay, Decatur
Mrs. Alice Martin, Virginia

Joseph C. Mason, Arlington, Va.

Mrs. Mary L. Langworthy, Winnetka
Rev. John H. Ryan, Pontiac
Mr. and Mrs. Arthur Meeker, Chicago
Dr. Arthur H. Lybyer, Urbana
Robert E. Schaad, Virginia
Lloyd Lewis, Libertyville
Ben Wiley, Springfield
Charles Leroy Brown, Chicago
Charles R. Webber, Baltimore, Md.
Marshall Solberg, Chicago
Father Jean Delanglez, Chicago
William H. Sinnock, Quincy

Our readers will notice among the above the names of some of the
state’s most eminent writers and scholars of European as well as of American
history. Four on this list have been members of the Society for over forty
years. It is fitting and proper, I think, for us to pause a moment in respect
to these members who have themselves moved into the realm of history.

Faithfully submitted,

J. MONAGHAN.

494

NEWS AND COMMENT

FINANCIAL REPORT

714 First National Bank Building
Springfield, Illinois
September 29, 1949
The Illinois State Historical Society
Springfield, Illinois

Total cash on hand September 1, 1948

RECEIPTS — Junior Historian Fund

Receipts 50th Anniversary Fund

OTHER RECEIPTS:
Regular Memberships
Life memberships . . .

5,834.00

600.00

Total memberships

Books sold

Interest on Government bonds. .
Interest on Savings in Marine Bk.
Miscellaneous (postage, etc.) . .

6,434.00

25.00

45.00

20.00
9.72

$ 6,533.72

EXPENDITURES:

Printing $

Miscellaneous ( clipping bureau,
postage, Bank charges, etc.) . .

Meeting expenses

Travel expense

Salaries

Withholding tax

Editorial expense

925.01

926.38

449.19

625.35

1,117.20

82.80

100.00

Gentlemen:

I have examined the books and accounts of The Illinois State Historical
Society for the period beginning September 1, 1948 and ending August
31, 1949. All receipts were checked against bank deposits and all expendi-
tures against voucher checks.

Upon such examination, I find the following:

Cash in 1st National Bank on Sept. 1, 1948 $ 3,748.33

Jr. Historian cash in 1st Nat’l Bank 9/1/48 261.96

$ 4,010.29

Cash in Springfield Marine Bank 9/1/48 2,000=00

$ 6,010.29

1,418.80

98.00

NEWS AND COMMENT

495

Half tones

86.60

4,312.53

Net Gain

2,221.19

$ 9,748.28

Junior Historian Expenditures 1,215.92

$ 8,532.3 6

50th Anniversary Fund Expenditures:

Sent to Treasurer of fund $ 23.00

Returned to donors 15.00

38.00

Cash on hand September 1, 1949 $ 8,494.36

U. S. Government Bonds on Hand :

Ten $500 bonds purchased 9/12/39 at a cost of 3,750.00

(Numbered respectively D281796-98-99; D281800-01-
02-03-04-05-06. These bonds fall due in September 1949
and so now have a value of $5,000 but accrued interest has
not been taken into account)

U. S. bonds purchased in November, 1945 — cost 2,000.00

(No. 7040L and No. 7041 A- 2 L4 Treasury of 1959-62,

$1000 each)

$ 14,244.36

September 1, 1949 Resource and Liability Statement:

Resources

Cash in 1st National Bank $ 6,474.36

Cash in Springfield Marine Bank 2,020.00

U. S. Government bonds as above 5,750.00

Junior Historian Fund

50th Anniversary Fund

Net worth of Illinois State Historical Society. . . .

Liabilities

464.84

60.00

13,719.52

$ 14,244.36 $ 14,244.36

Yours truly,

{signed) LUCY C. WILLIAMS

To this sum should be added the $3,580.50 collected by Oscar Hayward
I making a total of $17,824.86.

496

NEWS AND COMMENT

WHEN SANDBURG WENT TO NEW SALEM

• — ■ !

The combination of Carl Sandburg and New Salem was one that camera «
fans among the members of the Historical Society could not resist. As a
result practically every third person who made the trip to the Park on
October 8, carried a camera. The picture on the cover of this issue was one :
of the best of the many good photographs taken. It was made by Cecil Ten-
drick of the Jacksonville Journal-Courier. Seated to the left of Sandburg is :
Fred Schrader, of Springfield, who was in charge of the Society’s program at
New Salem. (Other pictures on pages 488-89.)

"OTTAWA CHIEFTAINS”

( Reprinted from Charles Collins’ column, "A Line ’o Type or Two,” in :•
the Chicago Daily Tribune of June 7, 1949. Another review of the book ap- |
peared in the June, 1949, Journal.)

''Two Judges of Ottawa ,” by Wayne C. Townley; published by the McLean ss
County Historical Society, Bloomington, 111. m

This book is an excellent example of regional history, carefully studied i ^
with reference to the character and influence of a small city’s chief person- F
alities. In the early years of the Illinois saga, it seems that Ottawa had quite m
a reputation as a center of social culture, educational progress, and political t}
influence. Mr. Townley says it "so far outdistanced the majority of places |(
in Illinois as to be a subject of common remark.” It had its mansion build-
ers, too, before Chicago took up domestic architecture on a large scale, and
some of them are still standing on Ottawa’s north bluff, overlooking the
town and its river vistas.

The two judges of the book’s title were T. Lyle Dickey and John Dean
Caton. Mr. Townley deals with them at length, but while warming up to
full-length studies of these distinguished jurists, he sketches many other H
worthies of the Ottawa legend and also gives Lincoln an occasional entrance a]
upon the scene. Altogether, he has done a scrupulous job of background |(
painting. |

Ottawa’s first citizens often had Chicago connections during the period
with which Mr. Townley deals, and quite a few, after building their houses
on the bluff, moved to Chicago to build others. Among these migrants was
Mr. Townley’s favorite character, Judge Caton, whose story fills almost half
the book. After the fortune he had acquired from real estate speculation
became impressive and his investment in telegraf communications had put ^
him into the millionaire class, he established a home in Chicago. Further- I
more, he selected a site on Prairie av. in 1872, early in that street’s social 11

NEWS AND COMMENT

497

history. Most of the characters in Arthur Meeker’s novel, Prairie Avenue,
must have been johnny-come-latelies to the Catons.

Judge Caton had one son, Arthur, and two daughters, Laura and Caroline.
They married, and their father built homes for the new families close to his
own. Arthur Caton, lawyer by profession and gentleman of fashion by
avocation, became a Chicago legend of the high, wide, and handsome way
of living, according to the manners of the 1880s and 1890s. He died in
1904, and his widow became the second wife of Marshall Field.

Backwoods Sister is the title of a novel written by Marion Neville (Mrs.
John Drury) about Abraham Lincoln’s sister Sarah. Publication of excerpts
from the story was begun on October 6, in the Chesterton (Indiana) Tribune.
Sarah Lincoln was two years older than her brother, she was married in 1826
to Aaron Grigsby and died in 1828.

Glen Ellyn’s young historian, Frederick Weiser, has published an inter-
esting booklet, Early Times Around About Glen Ellyn. The material origi-
nally appeared as a series of articles in the Wheaton Daily Journal, June
through September, 1949- Fred, who was born November 25, 1935, is the
youngest member of the DuPage County Historical Society. He is also a
member of the Illinois State Historical Society. A Lincoln collector and en-
thusiast, he has held membership in the Abraham Lincoln Association since
he was ten years old. Fred’s booklet sells for fifty cents.

At the October meeting of the Alton Area Historical Society Guy D.
Helmick spoke on ' Resources Which Early Settlers Found Here.” Members
also visited the rock on the bluffs above the Alton waterworks, and then went
to the plant of the Alton Brick Company where Harry L. Meyer talked on
the manufacture of brick.

The Aurora Historical Society’s annual "Old Settlers’ Reunion” attracted
a crowd of over one thousand to Phillips Park last August. This, the twenty-
first reunion, particularly honored Frank Weisgerber — one of the Aurora

498

NEWS AND COMMENT

Historical Museum’s most enthusiastic supporters. This museum, in the old
Tanner home, is one of the best of its kind in the state. It is maintained by
the Aurora Historical Society solely by contributions and memberships.

Within recent months the Bureau County Historical Society has received
many interesting gifts. Among these are several canvases by Julian Bryant,
an Illinois artist who was drowned in the Gulf of Mexico at the close of the
Civil War. This collection was the gift of Arthur Bryant III, of Princeton.

Two tours of old homes in Princeton were available to Society members ! !
and their guests on the afternoons of September 18 and 19 between one '
and five o’clock.

The Cahokia Historical Society had a picnic supper on August 29 in
Forest Park, St. Louis, and attended the Municipal Opera’s performance of the
"Song of Norway.”

Hermon Dunlap Smith has been named first vice-president of the
Chicago Historical Society and Dr. James A. James, second vice-president. !
Willard L. King has been elected to the Society’s board of trustees.

The notable events of the month, in both local and national history, are i
regularly made the subjects of exhibits in the Chicago Historical Society’s ;
museum. Chicago’s children are visiting this museum in ever increasing
numbers according to Director Paul M. Angle.

The past three years have brought many changes to the exhibit rooms.
Thirteen have been done over completely and there have been minor
changes and additions in others. Two new rooms were opened in October:
the New Republic Room, containing exhibits belonging to the period from j
1800 to 1830, and the Westward Expansion Room, for exhibits from 1830 to i
the Civil War.

The sixteenth annual reunion of the Lawndale-Crawford Historical As-
sociation (Chicago) was held on October 27, at the Toman Branch Library.
Arthur D. McLane was the principal speaker. His topic, "Milepost 100,”
reviewed some of the outstanding events in the history of the Burlington

NEWS AND COMMENT

499

road — one hundred years old in 1949. The program also included square
dancing with William Del Frank as "caller.” Peter B. Ritzma was the pro-
gram director.

Robert A. Jamieson has been elected president of the West Side
(Chicago) Historical Society. Other officers chosen in October include:
Pearl Field, honorary life president; Helen S. Babcock, honorary president;
Charles X. Clancy, first vice-president; Hobart H. Sommers, second vice-
president; Margaret McBride, third vice-president; and John F. Butler, fourth
vice-president. Stanley Pargellis spoke at the Society’s fall meeting in
November.

Paul M. Angle was the guest speaker at the October 14, meeting of the
Historical Society of Woodlawn (Chicago). Mr. Angle talked about incidents
in Illinois history with which people, in general, are not familiar.

Officers of the Edwards County Historical Society are: James Hardy,
president; L. R. Pitzer, vice-president; Mrs. Laura Killough, treasurer; Mrs.
Edna Oakley, recording secretary; Alice Bradshaw, corresponding secretary.
The trustees are: Gilbert Jones, Roy Curtis, and L. R. Pitzer. E. L. Dukes
is custodian of the Society’s library and museum.

Elmer Phelps showed motion pictures at the October meeting. They
were films taken in the very early days of the "movies.” The styles of
clothing and ancient-vintage cars were in striking contrast with the scenes
on the beautiful reel in color of Kentucky scenery and people which Mr.
Phelps took on his vacation this past summer.

In November Mrs. Walter A. Wheeler was in charge of the program.
"Old Silver” was the topic of discussion.

A project of the Geneva Historical Society is to add a copy of the ceme-
tery records to the Society’s files. Officers of the group are: Dr. Charles H.
Lyttle, president; Mary Wheeler, first vice-president; Mrs. Warren Smith,
second vice-president; Jeanita Peterson, treasurer; Mrs. Margaret A. Allan,
secretary. The board members are: Mrs. William D. Bangs, Sr., William H.
Bullock, Elva Garfield, Rufus C. Bennett, Edith Bailey, and Edwin Soderstrom.

500

NEWS AND COMMENT

The annual picnic for members of the Glencoe Historical Society and
their families was held on Sunday, August 21. Hostesses for the event were
Mrs. Charles A. Saxby and Mrs. L. H. Hein. Mrs. George R. Young was
chairman of the social committee, and Mrs. J. K. Calhoun, program
chairman.

The enthusiasm for local history is spreading. At present plans are
being considered for the organization of a Greene County historical society.
Mrs. L. A. Dickson spoke before the county board of supervisors in September
on behalf of the contemplated society.

At the September meeting of the Jefferson County Historical Society
in Mt. Vernon, Mother Mary Aloysia read a paper on the "History of Hos-
pital Foundations in Mt. Vernon and Jefferson County.” Mrs. Edna Casey is
president of the group.

Ralph Francis, president of the Kankakee County Historical Society,
spoke before the Kankakee Lions Club on August 23. Lions Club members
were then taken on an escorted tour of the historical and arts building by
Mr. Francis, Mrs. Harry Yeates, Mrs. Fannie Still, Mrs. Harold Simmons, and
Mrs. E. S. Myers.

Logan County also feels the need of a historical society. An editorial in
the Lincoln Courier of September 23, entitled "We Need a Historical So-
ciety,” urged citizens to breathe life into the idea.

The McLean County Historical Society has received another piece of
Lincoln’s handwriting. This is in the form of a small card dated "Aug. 29,
1861” on which Lincoln wrote, "Sec. of Treasury, please see J. S. Beard,
bearer of this.” The card was presented to the Society by Clara Hassler, a
niece of the original J. S. Beard.

NEWS AND COMMENT

501

Officers of the Madison County Historical Society, elected at Alhambra
on October 1, are: Donald F. Lewis, president; Ella Tunnell, first vice-presi-
dent; the Rev. A. L. Ludwig, second vice-president; Jessie Springer, secretary;
C. W. Ellis, treasurer; and Harry Dorsey, historian. Directors re-elected
include: Jesse R. Brown, the Rev. A. L. Ludwig, H. P. S. Smith, and William
Water. Mary Harnsberger was elected a director to fill the vacancy on the
board created by the death of Henry B. Eaton.

Judge Jesse R. Brown spoke at this meeting on the topic, "Alhambra
Through the Years.”

Mrs. Eugene Schmidt presided at the October meeting of the Edwards-
: ville chapter of the Madison County Historical Society. The speakers were
Mrs. V. H. Mindrup, who told of the visit to New Salem State Park with
the Illinois State Historical Society on October 8, and Mrs. Dallas Harrell,
j who described Carl Sandburg’s talk at New Salem and read some of his
poems. Mrs. W. H. Morgan is program chairman.

Officers of the Mattoon Historical Society named at its annual meeting
in October include: Dr. Horace Batchelor, president; R. Harvey Wright,
vice-president; Mrs. J. H. Glover, secretary; and Earl Robertson, treasurer.
Directors chosen for three-year terms are: Mrs. Horace Champion and
Joseph Sawyer.

Dr. Morrison Sharp, the principal speaker at this meeting, talked on the
[ subject, "In Defense of the Puritans.”

Historic little Nauvoo, onetime Mormon capital, held its Annual Grape
Festival on September 9, 10, and 11. Noted for its famous blue cheese the
community’s celebrations included the "Wedding of the Wine and Cheese,”
a parade, and historic tours to the old wine cellars and cheese caves. This
year additional parking and picnic facilities were provided in the new Nauvoo
State Park.

At the October 20, meeting of the Oak Park Historical Society Mrs.
James W. Wilson presented "Early Days in South Oak Park.” Mrs. George
W. White presided.

502

NEWS AND COMMENT

Leslie H. Ernst spoke at the Peoria Historical Society’s first meeting of ; I pi
the season in October. His topic was, "Peoria Newspapers and Newspapermen } k*
I Have Known.” George E. Johnson is president of the group.

The Illinois State Historical Society records with sorrow the death of I ii

William H. Sinnock, on July 23, 1949. Mr. Sinnock, lifetime president of ?

the Historical Society of Quincy and Adams County, had been a member of l
the State Historical Society since 1939. A photograph of the John Wood I

mansion, the headquarters of the Historical Society of Quincy and Adams : I

County, appears on the cover of Old Illinois Houses, by John Drury. This i
was a publication of the State Historical Society in 1948.

Officers of the Historical Society of Quincy and Adams County are: ;
James W. Carrott, first vice-president and acting president; Oliver B.
Williams, second-vice-president; William J. Dieterich, recording secretary; -
Ella Rogers, corresponding secretary; Harvey H. Sprick, treasurer; Mrs. Leaton
Irwin, librarian; Mrs. Louise W. Abbot, historiographer; Julius Kespohl,
auditor. The trustees are: L. E. Emmons, Sr., Dr. E. B. Montgomery, George :
Irwin, William F. Gerdes, Jr., and W. Edwin Brown.

Officers of the St. Charles Historical Society are: Mrs. Hugo Schneck,
president; Mrs. Rex Wells, vice-president; Mrs. Paul Nelson, secretary; Mrs. j
Selma Mitchell, librarian; May Jordan, treasurer; and Russel C. Norris, pub- I
licity chairman.

The fall meeting of the St. Clair County Historical Society was held at
Lebanon in the McKendree College chapel on October 31. The principal
speakers were the Rev. W. H. Whitlock, who spoke on "Looking Glass Prairie,
Its Ruins and Memories,” and Dr. W. C. Walton, whose topic was "Lebanon,
Its People and Institutions.” Dr. L. G. Osborn gave a brief review and com-
ments. The music was furnished by McKendree College under the direction
of Glenn Freiner.

Judge Elihu Nicholas Hall, author of Ballads from the Bluffs, was the

NEWS AND COMMENT

503

principal speaker at the September meeting of the Saline County Historical
Society. The group met in Harrisburg.

The Southern Illinois Historical Society held its autumn dinner meeting
in Carbondale on October 21. This annual get-together was in conjunction
with the diamond jubilee and homecoming celebration of Southern Illinois
University, October 20 to 22. Principal speaker for the Historical Society was
Richard L. Beyer, now of Erie, Pennsylvania, but formerly head of the History
Department of Southern Illinois University. Dr. Beyer was a founder and
the first president of the Southern Illinois Historical Society. Scerial Thomp-
son is now head of the organization.

Officers of the Stark County Historical Society are: W. C. Auble, presi-
dent; Harry W. Walker, vice-president; Annie Lowman, secretary; Rena
Baker, treasurer. The directors include: Carl H. Lehman, H. W. Walker,
James M. Armstrong, W. C. Auble, Ednah McClenahan, Mrs. Mary H. Grieve,
Annie Lowman, Earl O. Turner, and Robert Webster, Sr. Mrs. Harriett
Nicholson is custodian.

The Vermilion County Historical Society, founded originally in 1872,
has been reorganized. Officers of the organization now are: Joseph H. Barn-
hart, president; Frank E. Butcher, vice-president; Stephen Adams, secretary-
treasurer; and Harry Webber, librarian.

The Wilmette Historical Commission held its first "Wilmette Charter
Day” observance on September 18. This celebration, held in the Woman’s
Club of Wilmette, was attended by over 800 people. Displays of works of
art, photographs, and valuable heirlooms were part of the celebration. More
than fifty Wilmette and North Shore artists contributed their works.

A pamphlet by Herbert B. Mulford, Little Journeys to Historical Wil-
mette, also has been published and is to be used as an outline for a study and
discussion course in local history under the auspices of the Wilmette Public
Library.

504

NEWS AND COMMENT

Officers of the Winnetka Historical Society are: Mary S. King, presi-
dent; Rowland Weir, vice-president; Mrs. H. A. Orvis, secretary; Robert N.
Bayless, treasurer. New directors include Mrs. Frederick Dickinson and Robert
S. Burrows.

The Society sponsored its fourth annual auto trip on October 15. This
year the journey was to the Rock River Valley.

At the meeting on November 2, Mrs. Harry T. Booth spoke on "Old
Days in Winnetka and Vicinity.” Following her talk there were refreshments
and square dancing.

FAMILY HISTORIES

The Illinois State Historical Library is grateful to its many friends who
have donated family histories in recent months. Since many of the Library’s
patrons are interested in genealogy, these books are especially welcome. In
appreciation of these gifts, we are again listing the names of those who have
presented us with genealogies within the past twelve months.

Albert D. Bell, Rockland, Ohio, for Bell, "Hollis Notes, 1639-1948,
from Public and Private Records in the States of Maryland and
Delaware” ( mimeographed ) .

Willis Arnold Boughton, Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, for Boughton, Arnold,
Redway, and Earle Families, and Boughton, Bouton, Boughton,
and Farnam Families.

Alva Bradley, 2d, Cleveland, Ohio, for Rideout, Ancestors and Descen-
dants of Morris A. Bradley.

John M. Bullard, New Bedford, Massachusetts, for Bullard, The Rotches.

Mrs. Philip D. Bunce, Minneapolis, Minnesota, for Bunce, Some of the
Ancestors of the Reverend John Selby Frame and His Wife Clara
Winchester Dana.

Walter Q. Bunderman, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, for Bunderman, Flory,
Flora, Fleury, Family History, 1948.

Mrs. D. S. Coggins, Hopedale, Illinois, for Pugh, Capon Valley, Its Pio-
neers and Their Descendants, 1698 to 1940.

Noah Webster Cooper, Nashville, Tennessee, for Cooper, Sketch of
Noah B. Cooper and Wife Lucinda Jenerette.

J. L. Cooprider, Evansville, Indiana, for Cooprider, Harbaugh History ;
A Directory, Genealogy and Source Book.

Clyde Henry Corbett, Canton, Ohio, for Corbett, Genealogy of the
Descendants of Robert Corbett.

NEWS AND COMMENT

505

Henry Bedinger Davenport, Jr., Charleston, West Virginia, for Daven-
port, Genealogy of the Davenport Family.

Hazel Esther Drake, Rippey, Iowa, for Drake, Ancestors and Descen-
dants of Dennis Drake, Russell, Iowa, and Drake, A Branch of the
Root Family.

N. W. Draper, Mt. Vernon, Illinois, for Kelley, Record of Carter Jerrel
Kelley Commenced in A. D., 1834.

Mrs. Cora A. Du Laney, Odenton, Missouri, for Du Laney, The Ander-
sons from the Great Fork of the Patuxent.

Thomas A. Enloe, Falls Church, Virginia, for Enloe, Enloe — Enlow —
Inloiv Genealogy.

Mrs. Nellie B. Fellows, Lodi, Wisconsin, for Fellows, History of Bartholo-
mew Family.

William U. Halbert, Belleville, Illinois, for Waddell, Joel Halbert and
His Descendants.

Nathaniel C. Hale, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, for Hale, Roots in Vir-
ginia; An Account of Captain Thomas Hale.

Mrs. Frederick C. Harrington, St. Louis, Missouri, for Harrington, A
History of the Messenger Family, Volume 2.

Herbert Howe, Mt. Kisco, New York, for Howe, Yorkshire to West-
chester, a Chronicle of the Wood Family.

Frederick M. Hutchinson, Houston, Texas, for Hutchinson, The Hutch-
inson Family.

Gordon Ireland, Mt. Ranier, Maryland, for Ireland, The Balestiers of
Beechwood.

Wayne Van Leer Jones, Houston, Texas, for Jones, "Docker Family of
Shawneetown, Illinois” (chart, photostat).

Laurence Prescott Keith, Chicago, for Keith, The John Roney Family of
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. . . .

Ezra McFall Kuhns, Dayton, Ohio, for Kuhns, Wogaman, Burkett,
H older y.

Robert A. Love, Arlington, Virginia, for Love, The Story of James
McBride, of Whitehall, Illinois, a Greene County Pioneer.

Massachusetts Historical Society (for Robert and Frederic Winthrop),
for Mayo, The Winthrop Family in America.

Charles Joseph Maxwell, Dallas, Texas, for Maxwell, Descendants of
Gregory Bonnifeld (1726-1794), and Descendants of John Minear
(17 32? -17 81).

W. L. L. Peltz, Albany, New York, for Peltz, Peltz Record, Rev. Philip
Peltz, D. D., Reformed Protestant Dutch Church.

506

NEWS AND COMMENT

Mrs. Charles S. Pillsbury, Wayzata, Minnesota, for Holman, Ancestry
of Colonel John Harrington Stevens and His Wife, Frances Helen
Miller.

Mrs. Edith Chandler Rollow, Provo, Utah, for Chandler, The Descen- ]
dants of Roger Chandler of Concord, Mass, 1658.

Walter R. Sanders, Litchfield, Illinois, for Sanders, "Genealogy of the
Potter- Wilson-Fellows-Elliott Families,” and Sanders, "Smyth
Tandy, 1741-1823, Virginia Gentleman & Kentucky Pioneer”
(mimeographed) .

Standard Printing Company, Louisville, Kentucky, for McQuiston, The
McQuiston, McCuiston and McOuesten Families, 1620-1937.

Mrs. Harriet Ford Torrey, Sacramento, California, for Torrey, Just
Between Ourselves. A Book of Recollections of my Father, James
Ford.

Albert Willis Tressler, Jacksonport, Wisconsin, for Tressler, Jonathan
and Joseph Tressler and their Descendants.

Mrs. I. P. Trotter, Elkton, Kentucky, for Trotter, Trotter Genealogy,
the V irginia-T ennessee-Mississippi Trotter Line 1725-1948.

William Penn Vail, Blairstown, New Jersey, for Vail, Moses Vail of
Huntington, L. I., Showing his Descent from Joseph (2) Vail, Son of
Thomas Vail at Salem, Massachusetts, 1640. . . .

Mrs. H. B. Yamagata, Fanwood, New Jersey, for Dakin, Descendants of
Thomas Dakin, of Concord, Mass.

MEMBERSHIP GAINS CONTINUE

The third quarter of 1949 marked a continuation of the Illinois State
Historical Society’s membership gains shown in the first half-year when 671
new names were added to the rolls. Following are the 331 who joined during
July, August, and September:

ANNUAL MEMBERS

Abbott, Mrs. George Andrews. .Oak Park

Adams, Varian B Chicago

Ahlquist, Mrs. Elizabeth .... Jacksonville

Allegretti, Francis B Elburn

Ashdown, Mrs. Arnold McNabb

Baer, Mrs. J. W Evanston

Bailey, Frances Jacksonville

Baker, Dorothy E Cicero

Baker, Elmer J., Jr Winnetka

Baker, Frances Golconda

Baker, Hundley B Springfield

Ballinger, Floyd L Springfield

Bannister, Dr. Turpin C Urbana

Barker, Dr. R. A Alton

Barnstable, C. W Nokomis

Bath, Gomer Peoria

Bedinger, Dr. Paul L Evanston

Bergstrom, Clarence N Chicago

Berriman, George Springfield

NEWS AND COMMENT

507

I Birdsall, Mrs. Carl A Chicago

I Blaine, Anne Chicago

I Blakely, Margaret Riverside

\ Blane, Mrs. Frank E Petersburg

I Blood, Mrs. Wallace W Oak Park

! Bonhajo, Louis Glencoe

j Bouton, Mrs. Guy Princeville

Bradley, Theodore Murphysboro

Brady, Loyd Naperville

I Brainerd, George S Mundelein

! Brainerd, H. P Waterman

Brantingham, Mrs. Alan. . . .Bloomington

Brewster, Marie E Chicago

, Bridgford, Lyle C Joy

[ Briggs, Mrs. William D Chicago

I Buchbinder, Mrs. Hazel Chicago

) Buckley, Leland H Edwardsville

Burdick, Orson B Kankakee

I Burkhalter, Claudia E Peoria

I Burnett, Mrs. Fred Waverly

I Burnett, Olive Waverly

Burr, Mrs. W. B Hinsdale

I Byloff, Dr. Forrest G Kewanee

I Cain, T. R Jacksonville

I Cain, Willard E Wheaton

I Calhoun, Mrs. Leslie D Farmer City

I Cantrall, Evans Springfield

I Carey, Mrs. A. B Pittsfield

I Carlson, Dr. Magnolia M. .East St. Louis

I Carter, Mary Dea Danville

I Case, Leland D Chicago

I Castle, Mrs. S. L Geneva

I Christgau, Ferdinand G Chicago

l Clifton, John and Robert Milford

J Climo, Elizabeth Peru

j Coay, Mrs. Helen Decatur

[ Cohen, Samuel Theodore Chicago

I Cole, Mrs. Bert Jacksonville

| Congdon, Mrs. Winifred. . . .Des Plaines

j Cooper, B. O Springfield

l Coultas, Mrs. O. F Jacksonville

k Cox, Mrs. Earl Perrysville, Ind.

I Cox, Paul W Elmhurst

F Crane, Howard G Chicago

I Crigler, E. M Webster Groves, Mo.

I Crossland, Mrs. Marie Nagl Chicago

I Croxton, F. Eastman Mt. Sterling

I Cullin, Victor Winnetka

I Curtis, Robert R Carbondale

I Dalrymple, Clifford L Chicago

Davis, George M Decatur

Deatherage, Mattie Waverly

DeBoice, Judge Benjamin S.. .Springfield

DeMotte, Amy Jacksonville

Derr, Charles I Decatur

Dick, Edison Lake Forest

Dunlap, Olivia Jacksonville

Eckert, Floyd E Woodstock

Eldridge, Mrs. N. M St. Elmo

Ensel, Lee Springfield

Enz, Fred Carrier Mills

Epple, Louis R Chicago

Ettinger, Cecil R Nauvoo

Ewert, Mrs. Arthur Jacksonville

Ewert, Dr. Arthur E Jacksonville

Eyestone, Lura M Normal

Fairbank, Arthur D . Jacksonville

Ferris, Mrs. Richard K Kankakee

Finn, Ann L Chicago

Fisher, Cynthia Springfield

Fisher, George M Chicago

Fisher, Mrs. Guy H Urbana

Fishwick, Harry Springfield

Flake, Mrs. J. C Evanston

Flasch, Lolita Chicago

Fletcher, Prof. Harris F Urbana

Ford, Mrs. J. R East St. Louis

Franklin, Mrs. Walter D Quincy

Frazier, Mrs. Clifton W Peoria

Fredericks, J. L Springfield

Frey, Mary C Chicago

Friberg, H. W Chicago

Fuller, Morris G Bloomington

Funk, Mrs. H. E Waverly

Funk, Yale F Springfield

Gardner, L. Max Springfield

Geiman, Louis H Chicago

Gentry, J. Wes Carterville

Gibson, James B Geneseo

Gill, John Wesley, II Elizabeth

Gillham, Ralph Jacksonville

Gillham. Mrs. Ralph Jacksonville

Grassel, Ernest A Peoria

Grometer, Mrs. Carl Aurora

Grover, Dr. Jerry G Kenilworth

Guest, R. Albert Springfield

Gugler, Hans H Wheaton

Gurler, Beatrice DeKalb

Guyot, Roy R . .Noble

Hageman, Lucille Waverly

Hallock, Dr. L. K Jacksonville

Hallock, Mrs. L. K Jacksonville

Hanson, Mrs. M. W Havana

Hardin, Ruth Springfield

Hawkins, Russell Springfield

Hawks, Mrs. J. D McNabb

Heap, Otto D Grafton

Heino, Mrs. Albert F Chicago

Henrichs, Maud . Litchfield

Hepburn, Gordon Chicago

Herr, Theodore A Chicago

Herrick, Cheesman A. .Philadelphia. Pa.
Hertz, Gilbert G Kankakee

508

NEWS AND COMMENT

Hoagland, Ernest Jacksonville

Hoagland, Mr. and Mrs. Karl K. .Alton
Holle, Mrs. Augusta E ........ .Elmhurst

Holloway, William J. . . . Joliet

Hoogland, Clarence C Springfield

Hooker, Rev. Robert DeSoto

Hooper, Frank Ingram Elgin

Hooper, William E Downers Grove

Hughes, Carroll T Jacksonville

Jarrett, William Dean Jacksonville

Jehn, Carmen Chicago

Jensen, Mrs. Anker C. . Kankakee

Jess, William B Springfield

Johnson, Ernest A Lake Forest

Kampp, Hubert E. ..... . Chicago

Kennedy, Betty Lou Aurora

Keplinger, John G Springfield

Kerr, William J Chicago

Kimble, Mrs. R. A Chicago

Knapp, Fred G Springfield

Knerr, Harry O Allentown, Pa.

Knoch, Win G Naperville

Knowles, Mrs. Homer C. Berwyn

Knowles, W. E East St. Louis

Koch, Edward Belleville

Krabel, Mrs. J. R Woodland

Kraft, Mrs. G. Howard Wilmette

Kratina, Sidney Chicago

Kreider, D. Belle Chenoa

Krieger, William E Peoria

Krouse, Elizabeth Chicago

Kueper, Henrietta Carlyle

Landes, Mrs. Herbert Ross, Sr. . .LaGrange

Lawless, Judge John Q Mt. Sterling

Lawrence, James Springfield

Lebold, Foreman M Chicago

Leffler, Ruth L Chicago

Lemp, Mr. and Mrs. John F Alton

Lender, C. F Los Angeles, Calif.

Leonhard, Emma Mae Jacksonville

Leren, Palmer Wheaton

Levitt, Theodore G Chicago

Lobdell, William J Lena

Lottmann, Mrs. Mary E Peoria

Lowe, Mr. and Mrs. Albert S., Jr

Springfield

Ludlum, Robert P Carlinville

Ludwig, George W Belleville

McCarthy, Mrs. David H . . . . Springfield

McClelland, Mrs. C. P Jacksonville

McClenahan, Dr. and Mrs. Frank. Toulon

McGlasson, Mrs. Scott Mulkeytown

Madson, Frank P., Jr Wichita, Kan.

Mahler, Pauline St. Louis, Mo.

Marr, John New Berlin

Marsh, Carrie Weldon

Maston, Mrs. Maud L Chicago j

Mayfield, Mrs. John C Chicago j

Meade, Evelyn E Chicago

Megowen, Mr. and Mrs. Frank. . . .Alton t

Merkel, Mrs. Albert O Quincy j

Meyer, Edward M Glen Ellyn !

Miller, Carl Greenview

Miller, Frederick C Peru j

Milnar, Dr. Anthony L Chicago i

Minor, L. O Kankakee j

Moore, Ainsley Jacksonville

Moore, Margaret K Jacksonville }

Moore, Ralph M Decatur j

Mortell, Marie Virginia Chicago j

Moseley, Mrs. John P . . . . Lawrenceville I

Mougin, Gladys C Elizabeth j

Mrovka, Sophia Collinsville

Mundt, Dr. G. Henry Chicago !

Munn, Loyal L Freeport I

Murphy, H. C Chicago

Newman, Mrs. Walter Thornton |

Niermann, Dennis Nashville j

Norris, Mr. and Mrs. Guy. . .Deer Creek |

O’Dwyer, Margaret M Chicago

Ohlemiller, Frank J Peoria

Okeson, Margaret Albertson. . .Wilmette

Omer, Lewis Carthage

Orris, Mrs. Fred W Bethany

Otrich, George H Anna

Palenske, Lawrence M Park Ridge

Pasel, Mrs. Lawrence Jacksonville

Payment, Roy M., Jr Lombard

Peck, Jesse Springfield

Phillips, Mrs. P. C. St. Elmo

Plattenburg, Miriam G Canton

Poedtke, Carl H Chicago

Powel, Mrs. Charles A Jerseyville

Pratt, Harry E Muskegon, Mich.

Purl, Mrs. Oliver T Carrollton

Putnam, Charles M Peoria

Putzier, Ervin Mondovi, Wis.

Rae, Edwin C Urbana

Ragsdale, H. W Decatur

Raycraft, Ed Bloomington

Reid, Mr. and Mrs. James McNicol. .

Richards, Mrs. Helen R ....... . Oswego

Riggins, M. I Harrisburg

Rissler, Howard F Springfield

Rizzo, Peter Champaign

Roach, Neal F Decatur

Rockwell, Mrs. Emory S Hinsdale

Ross, Mrs. O. A DuQuoin

Ross, Orville H Wheaton

Ruhle, W. V Springfield

NEWS AND COMMENT

509

Sandman, Charles Jacksonville

Sawyer, Mrs. Celia Lincoln Decatur

Saylor, Mrs. Kathrine L Pittsfield

Scatliff, Dr. H. Kenneth Evanston

Schiesser, Mrs. Charles W Chicago

Schmitz, Floyd J Oglesby

Schwartz, Charles K Chicago

Scribbins, Mrs. John A Galesburg

Sealock, Mrs. B. H Tallula

Sedlak, Frank Springfield

Seyfarth, Karl Edwin Chicago

Shanahan, Thomas, Jr Chicago

Shirley, Flenry W White Hall

Shriver, Mrs. Kent La Harpe

Sihler, Mrs. George A., Jr. . . .Litchfield

Sinclair, Mr. and Mrs. Harold

Bloomington

Sisk, Mrs. Bonnie Junction

Skinner, Mrs. Ruth Princeton

Small, Mrs. Ralph L Chicago

Smith, Mrs. Basil B. .Kennewick, Wash.

Smith, Mrs. Helen W La Harpe

Smith, Roy L Chicago

Sneller, Dr. Charles D Peoria

Snider, Shirley Mulkeytown

Snyder, Mrs. V. Dale Bethany

Solomon, Mrs. Robert C. . . .Springfield

Souders, Neil Springfield

Spitzer, Mrs. S Evanston

Starke, Aubrey H. .. .Washington, D.C.

Starke, Earle P Chicago

Stein, Mrs. Henry B Champaign

Stenberg, Mrs. George Thornton

Stephens, William C Centralia

Stephenson, Mrs. C. A. . . .Bloomington

Stewart, Mrs. Hugh A Normal

Strand, Ruth H Elmhurst

Strieker, Alvina S Granite City

Stroud, Ruth Normal

Stuckey, Barbara Monroe Center

Sundell, Mrs. Ernest W. .Highland Park
Swanson, David I Chicago

Tarr, Mrs. William W Chicago

Taylor, B. H Canton

Taylor, Mr. and Mrs. E. G Kewanee

Teckemeyer, Mrs. A. D Geneva

Temple, Wayne C Urbana

Tench, Marvin E Chicago

Terpening, Mrs. Richard E . . . Monmouth

Thomas, James R Forest Park

Thomas, Mrs. Walter E Carrollton

Thompson, Mrs. L. M Palestine

Thompson, Rev. Loyal M Kewanee

Tyson, Russell Chicago

Vallette, Mr. and Mrs. Julian

Edwardsville

Van Cleve, C. M Olney

Vandercook, Mrs. F. I ...... . Glen Ellyn

Van Valkenburgh, Mr. and Mrs. J. M.

Chicago

Vasconcellos, George Jacksonville

Vollenweider, Mrs. Lulu Tonica

Wagenman, Ira M Chicago

Waggoner, Esther E Alton

Walker, Judge Frank H. . . .Mt. Vernon

Walker, W. H East St. Louis

Wallace, Florence V. . . .Chicago Heights

Waller, Ellis J Kewanee

Wamnes, Mrs. Jack. . . .Burlington, Wis.

Ward, Rosemary Moline

Warren, Mrs. C. Boynton. . . .Springfield

Wattling, Eddie Springfield

Welch, Mrs. Helen E Waverly

West, Mrs. Germaine Allard. . . .Decatur

West, R. A .Decatur

Wheeler, Ruth Louisa Chicago

White, Milo Springfield

Whitefort, Mrs. A. R St. Elmo

Whiteside, Charles B St. Elmo

Wiederhold, Mrs. George. .Shawneetown

Wiiki, Mary Chicago

Wilkinson, Mrs. Porter A Bethany

Williams, Curtis Mt. Vernon

Williams, Maude .Mt. Vernon

Wilson, Ervin F Elmhurst

Wise, Mrs. Glenn V Lanark

Wisehart, Mrs. Joe Shawneetown

Withee, Mabel . Jacksonville

Wood, Mrs. Charles J Chicago

Wood, T. T Springfield

Worsham, Walter B Springfield

Young, Mrs. Charles William

Vero Beach, Fla.

Young, Mrs. William G Shipman

Membership Far Above 1949 Goal

When this graph was originally published in the March, 1949, issue
of the Journal the Fiftieth Anniversary membership goal of the Illinois State
Historical Society was 5,000. This proved a very modest figure as the rush
to join sent the line out through the top of the chart. The November 1,
membership of 6,750 is composed of 4,323 adult members and 2,427 Junior
members, which compares with 3,216 and 1,447 respectively for January 1.

This is an increase of 44 per cent for the first ten months of the year.
(Note the October 1, figures in the Secretary’s report on page 490.)

510

INDEX, 1949

Abbot, Mrs. Louise W 502

Abbott, Fidelia N 245

Abe Lincoln in Illinois (play) .242,487

Abell, P. T 190

Abilene (Kan.) 35-36

Abraham, 15n., 17

"Abraham Lincoln” (train) Ill

Abraham Lincoln: A History . . . .259-71
Abraham Lincoln and the United

States (reviewed) 479

Abraham Lincoln Association 474

Abraham Lincoln Book Shop, The. 491
Abraham Lincoln: Complete Works 271

Abrahamson, Elmer E 486, 491

Adams, Charles Francis, Jr 387

Adams, Charles Kendall 230

Adams, Franklin G 189-91

Adams, Franklin Pierce 143

Adams, John Quincy 392, 396

Adams, Minna Worthington (Mrs.

Albyn L.) Ill, 493

Adams, Stephen 503

Adams, Walter Burt 244

Adams, William R 422

Ade, George 482

Adventure in Enterprise: The Story
of Leaton Irwin and the Com-

pany He Founded (reviewed)

232-33

Agey, Andrew J 183, 187

Agnew, Dwight L 484

Ahlstrand, Alf O 247

Alarie, Clement 333

Alden, Marvin 0 247

Allan, Mrs. Margaret A 370, 499

Allen, A. Q 458

Allen, John W., article by 411-23

Allentown (111.) 296n.

Aloysia, Mother Mary 500

Alton (111.) 44, 325

Alton Area Historical Society

116, 242, 368, 497

Alton Courier 278, 283

Alton Weekly Courier

quoted 468-70

America Is West, an Anthology of

Middlewestern Life (book) . . 272
American Antiquarian Society. . . . 436

American Express Company 433

American Eire Marks (book) 348

American Fur Company 42, 153

American Lyceum: Town Meeting

of the Mind, The (book) ... 112

American Tract Society 437-38

Ammoreaux house (Ste Genevieve,

Mo.) 340n.

Ancestors and Descendants of Den-
nis Drake, Russell, Iowa

(book) 505

Ancestors and Descendants of Mor-
ris A. Bradley (book) 504

Ancestry of Colonel John Harring-
ton Stevens and His Wife,
Frances Helen Miller (book) 506

Ander, O. Fritiof 486, 492

Anderson, Frank Maloy 226-27

Anderson, J. W 139

Anderson, Mabel 370

Anderson, Robert 265

Anderson, Sherwood 138

Andersons from the Great Fork of

the Patuxent, The (book) . . 505

Angle, Paul M 113, 498, 499

Angot, Jerome 333

"Ann Rutledge” (train) Ill

Annals of Iowa (magazine) 484

Appomattox . 103-4

Archbold, John D 106

Architecture . .340n., 341, 342n., 343n.

See also Cahokia (111.) : Archi-
tectural landmarks

Arkansas, Post of the lOn.

Armstrong, James M 503

Armstrong, T. P 188

Army Air Forces in World War II,

The, Vols. 1 and 2 (review-
ed) 365-66

Armytage, W. H. G 484

Arnold, Isaac Newton 149

512

INDEX

Arnold, Redway, and Earle Fami-
lies (book) 504

Arpee, Edward 115

As Luck Would Have It: Chance

and Coincidence in the Civil

War (reviewed) 103-4

Ashley, William Henry 361

Askin, John 199n., 324n.

Assimut (Indian) 208n.

Atchison, David Rice 402

Atchison (Kan.) ..180-81, 183, 188-92

Atchison (Kan.) Champion (news-
paper) 191

Atherton, E. E. . . . 116

Auble, W. C 503

Aurora Branch Railroad . 241

Aurora Historical Society. 242, 368, 497

Austin, Moses 334, 338

Authentic History of the Vermont

State Prison, An 273

Babcock, Helen S 113, 499

Babcock, Milton, article by 348-51

Backwoods Sister (book) 497

Backivoodsman, The (book) 294

Backwoodsman, The (Grafton, 111.

newspaper) 275

Bacon, Francis L 114

Baer, Bernard 113, 369

Bagby, Albert Morris 88

Bagby, John C . 84-89

Bagby, Mary Scripps 86, 88, 89

Baie St. Paul (Canada) 336n.

Bailey, A 470

Bailey, Edith 499

Baker, David Jewett 156

Baker, George 248

Baker, Harold G 238

Baker, Rena 503

Balaban & Katz (Chicago) 133

Balestier, Caroline (Mrs. Rudyard

Kipling) . 149

Balestier, Charles Wolcott 149n.

Balestier, Joseph Neree 149

Balestiers of Beechwood, The

(book) 505

Ballads from the Bluffs (book) . .

502; reviewed, 106-7

Ballance, Charles 45-48, 51, 55

quoted 48-49, 54-55

Ballcoure, (Cahokia, 111.) 201

Baltz, Gustave A 117

Baltzell, Nancy A 58

Banditti of the Prairies (book) .... 431

Bangs, Mrs. E. H 246

Bangs, Mrs. William D., Sr. . . .370, 499

Banta, Richard Elwell 482

Baring Brothers (London) 31 On.

Baringer, William E 474

Barker, Samuel A 490

Barnes, A. S. & Company 438

Barnes, John C 426

Barnhart, Joseph H 110, 503

Barron [Baron?] brothers ( Cahokia,

111.) 326

Barry, Patrick 431

Bartholomew, (Cahokia,

111.) 201

Barton, James 47

Barton, Robert S Ill

Bascom, John 229-30

Bass, Mrs. Frank N 247

Batchelor, Horace 501

Bates, Edward 53n., 265

Bayard, Richard Henry 395

Bayless, Robert N 504

Baynton & Company ( Cahokia, 111.) 201

Beadle, John Hanson,

quoted 90-91

Beams, William 419-20, 422

Bear River (Idaho) 88

Beard, (Decatur, 111.) . . 469

Beard, J. S 500

Beaubien, Catherine Louise Pinney

(Mrs. Jean Baptiste) 165

Beaubien, Jean Baptiste

article on 147-66

Congress awards patent to 163, 165

Des Plaines River farm. . . .162, 165

early life 151-53

home.. 150, 161, 240; picture,
cover of June issue.

land claims 155; map of, 159

military service 154

picture 149

suit against U.S. 148, 155-58

INDEX

513

Beaubien, John B., see Beaubien,

Jean Baptiste

Beaubien, Josette La Framboise

(Mrs. Jean Baptiste) 151, 162, 165

Beaubien, Madore 166

Beaubien, Mark 166

Beaubien family . . .150, 151, 162, 166

Beaulieu, (Cahokia, 111.) .319m

Beaulieu, Jean 315n.

Beaulieu [Boleau], Michel. . 196n., 201

Beaulieu family 326

Beauvais, St. Gemme, house ( Ste

Genevieve, Mo.) 340n.

Beck, Marshall 104-5

Beckwith, Helen 371

Beckwith, Hiram Williams

quoted 463-66

Beecher, Edward 275, 276

Beloit College 461

Bell, Albert Dehner 504

Bell, John 408

Belleville (111.) 239, 329

Belmont, Battle of 103

Benet, Stephen Vincent 39

Bennett, Emerson 284

Bennett, Rufus C 499

Benoist, Ursule (Mrs. Richard

McCarty) 32 5n.

Benton, Thomas Hart 155, 395

Bequet, Andre 338

Bequet-Ribault house (Ste Gene-
vieve, Mo.) 336n., 340n.

Berens, H. A 370, 491

Bergeron, Edwin P 244

Bergh, Mrs. Lois M 113

Bergier, Jean 11-12

Berry and Lincoln, Frontier Mer-
chants: The Store That ” Wink-
ed Out” (book) Ill

Berthel, Mary Wheelhouse 98-99

Berthrong, Donald J.

book review by 101

Bessler, E. C 372

Bestor, Arthur E 101

Bethge, Charles A 113

Beveridge, Albert Jeremiah. . . .386, 482

Beyer, Richard L 503

Bidwell, John 87, 89

Big Thunder (Indian chief) ... . 355

Bigelow, Lewis 46

Billington, Ray Allen 472

Billon & Brother (Cahokia, 111.) . . 201
Biostratigraphic Studies of the Ni-
aiaran Inter-Reef Formation

in Northivestern Illinois (re-
viewed) 100

Birchard, Matthew 158

Birdsall, Mrs. Lewis 1 371

Birge, Edward A 475, 476

Birkbeck, Morris 107, 291

Bisseli, Daniel 102-3

Bissonet, (Cahokia, Ill.)203n.

Black, David J 41 6, 417

Black Hawk 310

Black Hills 38

Black Partridge (Indian chief) . . 43

Blackwell, Robert S 51

Blades, J. Wesley 243

Blair, Francis Preston 270

Blair, George 329

Blakely, Margaret 246

Blanchette, Louis 332n.

Blevins, Tom 136

Bliss, William Wallace Smith 56

Blodgett, Henry Williams 165

Blondin, (Cahokia, 111. ) 15m, 17

Bluffdale (111.) ...272-73, 290

"Bluffdale” [pseud.], see Russell, John

Boal, Robert 246

Bode, Carl 112

Bodmer, Charles 102

Bogardus, John L 45-46

Bohmker, J. C 244

Boisbriant, Pierre Duque, sleur de

13m, 2 In.

Bolduc house ( Ste Genevieve, Mo. )

336, 34ln.

Bolivar (Tenn.) 96

Bollinger, C. H 247

Bond, James 117

Bond, Shadrach 239

Bonney, Edward 431

Books

censorship 169-71

importance of 167-78

Boone County Historical Society. . 112

Booth, Mrs. Harry T 371

Booton, Joseph F 330n.

514

INDEX

Borah, William E 66-67

Borah, William N 66

Borg, George William 104-5

Borg & Beck Company (Moline,

111.) 104

Borg- Warner Corporation (Chi-
cago) 105

Bossu, Jean Bernard 22-23, 25

Botts, Thomas 313n.

Bouche, Francis 45 n.

Boughton, Willis Arnold 504

Bouis, Anthony R 53n.

Bourbonne, Antoine 45n.

Bourgmont [Bourgmond], Etienne

Venyard, sieur de 14

Bouton, Boughton, and Farnam

Families (book) 504

Bowlby, Mrs. Elmer H 243

Bowman, Joseph 194-95, 196n.

Bowman Dairy Company (Chicago) 243

Boylan, Rose Josephine

7n., 241, 330n., 367, 492

Boys’ Life of Abraham Lincoln. . . . 259

Brackenridge, Henry Marie 342

Braddock, Edward 23

Bradley, Alva, 2d 504

Bradley, Joshua 274

Bradley, Preston 369

Bradshaw, Alice 243, 499

Brady, Thomas 323, 326n.

Branch of the Root Family, A

(book) 505

Brandon, Rodney Howe 245

Brautigam & Keen ( Chicago ) ... .

Breckinridge, John Cabell 408

Breese, Sidney 156, 275, 339-40

Brenton, Ellen Starr 479

Brewster, Edward 484

Brickey, Emma 247

Bridger, James 35

Briggs, Ernestine B 484

Briggs, Harold E 478, 484

Brigham, Clarence S

426n., 436, 437, 444

Brigham, William B 115

Brinker, George 195 n.

Brinkerhoff, Fred W 180

Brisson, Alexis 324n., 340

Brisson, Pierre 333

Brons, Raymond N 372

Bronson, Arthur 160

Brooks, Elizabeth 245

Broutin, Ignace Francois 15

Brown, Austin 181

Brown, Charles Leroy 493

Brown, D 89

Brown, Dorothy 244

Brown, Eugene 372

Brown, Henrietta Thomas (Mrs.

Upton Swingley 462

Brown, Jason 181

Brown, Jesse R 501

Brown, John 142, 179, 181, 182

and Andrew J. Agey 187

death of 180, 189

Lincoln on 185

Brown, John (Dr.) 396

Brown, Robert E 368

Brown, W. Edwin 502

Brown, William 83

Browne, Robert Beil 245

Browning, Orville Hickman. .49, 50, 51

"Brownsville Affair” 106

Erush, Daniel 274-75, 277 >

Bryan, Charles 63n.

Bryan, Charles Wayland . . . .63n., 72

Bryan, Francis 57n.

Bryan, Frances Maria. ... 63n., 72, 74

Bryan, Hiram 63n.

Bryan, John (son of Silas) 63n.

Bryan, John (son of William) . . 58

Bryan, Mariah Elizabeth Jennings

(Mrs. Silas L.) 59, 70-71 |

picture 60

Byran, Martha 74

Bryan, Martha Strode (Mrs. Mor-
gan 57n. 1

Bryan, Mary Elizabeth 63n., 72 i

Bryan, Morgan 57n. ?

Bryan, Nancy Lillard 63n., 72

Bryan, Nancy Lillard (Mrs. John) 58
Bryan, Russell (Silas Bryan’s

brother) 69n., 73 j

Bryan, Russell (son of Silas) . .63n., 72
Bryan, Silas Lillard

ancestors 57n. M

article on 57-79

INDEX

515

death of 78

estate of 71-72

judicial career 62-66

personal characteristics 69

picture 61

quoted 67-68

religion of 66-67

Bryan, Virginia 63n.

Bryan, William 57-58

Bryan, William Jennings

..63, 68, 70-71, 72, 74-75, 76-77

Bryan, William Smith 57n.

Bryant, Arthur, III 498

Bryant, Julian 498

Bryant, William Cullen. . . .292n., 306n.
Buchanan, James. 62, 389, 399, 400, 405

Buck, Pearl S., article by 167-78

Buckingham, James Silk

292n., 302n., 309n., 311n.

quoted 355-56, 357-59

Buescher, Walter H 113

Buette, Allixe 201

Buffalo Bill (William F. Cody) ... 37

Buford, J. L 115

Bull Moose Party 132

Bullard, John M 504

Bullock, William K 370, 499

Bunce, Mrs. Philip D 504

Bunderman, Walter Q 504

Buntain, Mrs. C. M. Clay 244

Buntline, Ned (Edward Z. C. Jud-

son; 37, 284

Bunyan, Paul 33

Burdick, Orson 244

Bureau County Historical Society

112-13, 498

Burhorn, John F 492

Burkhart, W.S 247

Burley, A. H., & Co. (Chicago) . . 427
Burnham, Benjamin Franklin. . . . 432
Burnham’s Commercial School

(Rockford, 111.) 461

Burrows, Robert S 504

Burzle, John A 484

Buteau, Pere 202n.

Buteaux, Charles 317n.

Butcher, Frank E 503

Butler, Andrew Pickens 392, 401

Butler, Benjamin J 157

Butler, Charles 157-58

Butler, John F 113, 499

Butler, Pardee 180, 186

Butte County (Calif.) 89

Byers, Sophia Woodward (Mrs. Up-
ton Swingley) 462

Byford, William 436

Cabet, Etienne 91

Cahokia (111.)

articles on... 7-29, 193-208, 313-43

American domination 313-26

architectural landmarks 326-43

books on 236, 238, 366-67

British occupation 23-29

census

1723, 1732 14

1752 22

1767 27n.

courthouse. . 109, 200, 326-30, 341

described 27, 32 In.

flood of 1844 344

founding 8-12

land system 317-22

Louisiana period 12-23

maps of 16, 200

mills at 2 In.

Revolutionary War and 194-208

St. Clair County 328

250th anniversary celebration

109, 238-39

Cahokia Creek 323, 324, 325

Cahokia Historical Society. . . .369, 498

Cahokia Indians 9, 20

Cahokia Mounds State Park. . .238, 323
Cahokia 250th Anniversary Asso-
ciation 109

Caldwell, Norman W 247, 484

Calhoun, Mrs. James K 371, 500

Calhoun, John C 295n.

California Gold Rush . . . .84-89, 459-61

Callender, Eliot 481

Calve, Joseph 203n.

Cameron, Simon 270

Camp-Fire Sketches and Battle-Field
Echoes of the Rebe.Lion

(book) 291

Campbell, Alexander 87

Campbell, John 458

516

INDEX

Canaday, Dayton W 491

Canal Port (Chicago) 147

Cane Ridge Meeting House (Bour-
bon Co., Ky.) 332n.

Cannon, Joseph 131

Canteen Creek 323

Capon Valley, Its Pioneers and
Their Descendants, 1698 to

1940 (book)

504

Carbonia (111 .) , see Ottawa (111.)

Cardinal, Jean Baptiste. . .

325

Carey, Charles P

476

Carl Sandburg Association

241

Carney, Martin

203n., 206n.

Carondelet ( Mo. )

Carpenter, Charles Knapp .

236

Carroll, John

. . 331n., 352

Carrollton (111.)

, . . .272, 275

Carrott, James W

502

Carson, Christopher ("Kit Car-

son”)

Carson River Valley (Nev.) 89

Carstensen, Vernon

.229-30, 475

Carter, Clarence Edwin. . .

102-3

Cartwright, Peter

291

Casey, Mrs. Edna

244, 500

Casey, Robert J 104-5, 231-32

Cassidy, Claudia

146

Catalogue of School, Classical, Theo-

logical, Law, Medical, and Mis-
cellaneous Books 427

Cate, James Lea 365

Catherwood, Mary Hartwell 482

Catlin, George 102, 306n.

Caton, Arthur 497

Caton, Caroline 497

Caton, John Dean 228-29, 496-97

Caton, Laura 497

'Cavalcade of America” (radio pro-
gram ) Ill

Cave in Rock (111.) 107

Celia, Alex 330n.

Century Magazine, The 267

Cerre, Jean Gabriel 195n., 341

Cesirre, Antoine 317n.

Chadbourne, Mrs. Emily Crane. ... 113

Chadbourne, Paul A 230

Chaffee, Frank E 372

Chamberlin, Thomas C 230

Champion, Mrs. Horace 501

Chandler, Charles H 506

Chandler, Sophie 369

Chapin, Aaron L 46 1

Chapin, Mrs. Paul W 371

Chapman, Mrs. W. K 491

Charlevoix, Pierre Francois Xavier

de 13, 296-97, 340n.

Charnwood, Godfrey Rathbone Ben-
son, 1st baron 386, 479

Charter and Ordinance of the City

of Chicago (book) 430

Chartier, Michel 333

Chase, Salmon P 54, 397

Chatard, Ferdinand 352

Chatigny, Ignace 333

Chatillon log house (Prairie du

Pont, 111.) 342n.

Chauvin, (Cahokia, 111.) 201

Cheney, Jane Bryan 74

Chester (111.) 239

Chesterton (Ind.) Tribune 497

Cheyenne Daily Leader 32

Chicago (111.)

authors 138

Beaubien Court 165-66

booksellers and publishers . . . 424-45

Buckingham visits 359

Dearborn Park 160

imprints 430-32, 434-41

in 1820 (illus.) . .front cover (June)

in 1836 147-48

in 1853 (illus.) 164

fire dept, (first) 350

Ft. Dearborn Addition .. 160-61, 163

lake front case 165

land office in 155, 156

land sales (1839) 159-61

maps of 152, 159

Paulding visits 311

public library 160

Railroad Fair 240-41, 369

surveys of 150-51

Swingley visits 459

U.S. Circuit Court 46, 48

Van Buren visits 294

Chicago and North Western Rail-
way Company 114, 231-32

INDEX

517

Chicago Antiquities (book) 166

Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Rail-
road Company 241

Chicago City Directory 432

Chicago Daily News

127, 138, 141, 142-43

Chicago Historical Society

113, 243, 369, 498

Chicago History (magazine) 485

Chicago Journal (newspaper) .... 405
Chicago Lawn Historical Society 113, 243

Chicago Press and Tribune 346

Chicago Pulpit (weekly) 439

Chicago Record Herald 132

Chicago Republican (newspaper) . 260

Chicago River 147, 152

Chicago Sun-Times 145

Chicago, the History of Its Reputa-
tion 138

Chicago Times (newspaper) 389

Chicago Tribune 133, 497

Chillicothe (111.) 296n.

Chi’n Shi Huang Ti 169

Chinard, Gilbert 7n.

Chippewa Indians 147, 355

Choisser, Ralph 372

Chretienne, (Cahokia, 111.) 201

Christensen, James 209

Church of St. Isidore (New Madrid,

Mo.) 332n.

Church of the Holy Family (Ca-
hokia, 111.). 109, 239, 326, 330-38

illus 327, 337

Churches 332n., 336n.

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